Harry Potter and the Changes of War
by thesingingmonkeyisloud
Summary: Harry meets a very strange girl at St. Mungo's. She and Ron become close in the face of danger. Hagrid decides to adopt a baby girl. HHr and RI
1. Harry's Sorrows and Hagrid Joys

Changes  
  
Harry Potter was sitting in his room in Little Whinging, Surrey. His mood had been down ever since Sirius had fallen behind the veil only months ago. Now the heat was doing anything but helping him. Hagrid, Hermione, Ron, Fred, George, and even Neville were now sending him letters every day to make sure he was all right. Mrs. Weasley continuously sent him fudge and other treats and letters with tear stains on them. Harry had had enough of fudge, so now he was just giving it to Dudley who had no objections. He sighed as he remembered that he still had to write - everyone.   
  
He rolled off of his bed and took out a piece of parchment, a quill, and a bottle of ink. He sighed as he began to write:   
  
Ron,  
  
Everything's basically fine here. Congratulate your dad on his new TV. Don't let him fix it, he won't put it back right, no offense. Hey, why don't you Weasleys just combine your letters and save parchment, ink, Pig's energy, and the time it takes for me to read each of your letters? No, my scar's been just peachy, Ron, just a few twinges of pain. Knew you and Mione were going to go out eventually. Wasn't going to pass through my seventh year without at least seeing you two kiss. Ha ha. Yeah, it's not really all that funny when you start to think that you two will be snogging every other minute. Thanks, now I'm going to have nightmares. Really awful ones. Ah well. Nothing new to me, eh?   
  
Can't wait 'till school. More piteous looks. Perfect. More muttering. Great. More tears from your mum. Wonderful. More people thinking that I've lost it. Whoop dee do. I'll just skip my way right on down to St. Mungo's to visit Lockhart and stay there, getting more and more autographs within every passing minute. That's what most people want. Why don't I just give it to them? Or better yet, I could kill myself. At least Voldemort would be happy. Hey, maybe your mum would stop crying then, huh? Dumbledore wouldn't have to worry about me anymore. You could find a real best friend. The Order wouldn't have to worry about me. I wouldn't endanger anyone else's life. I'd even be with my mum and dad. No more Dudley. No more Dursleys ever, actually. Hmm. That's the only other time that I've ever thought about that. And that was in our third year when… Well, you know.   
  
I'd even be with him then. I'd be with everyone who ever actually cared for me. I know your mum's going to say that she cared for me, and she did, and she makes really good fudge, just ask Dudley. But that's just not the same. What do you reckon would be the best way to do it? Drown myself? Hang myself? Nah, I don't want to suffer all that much. Maybe I should cut myself. I know the best way to do it is to hit a vein in your throat, but if I go too deeply and puncture my windpipe I'd suffocate, which I don't want to do. Hmm. Maybe a few good, deep cuts on my wrists would do it. Or over-dose on pills. That's a nice way to do it. Lock myself in the bathroom and down a few bottles of pills. Merlin knows Uncle Vernon has enough of them.   
  
Merlin, Ron, I'm tired. I've been tired all summer, although it's only been a few weeks. No matter how much I sleep I always wake up tired. Ah well. That'll all change in a little bit. I hope your mum feels better with the whole menopause thing. I looked what it was up in the World Book. I could have gone a whole lifetime without knowing that they had a mucous membrane. Yeah, you wouldn't think that they'd put pictures of all of that in there, would you? They did. Very graphic pictures. Pictures that would make Neville start to cry. Then again, Snape makes Neville cry, which is actually kind of funny. Thank Bill for the rock C.Ds, they're awesome. I like Queen's Bohemian Rhapsody best. It's all slow and sad and about how a guy kills himself but feels bad for his mother and then it gets all weird and quick and I lobe it. Wait, no, not lobe, love. Sorry, I'm just really tired. I'm going to save Hedwig's strength, don't want her out in this weather. I'll Floo it to you from the kitchen stove. You can do that, right? Well, hope so. If not, well, I'm just writing to Mr. Nobody now, aren't I? HI, MR. NOBODY!  
  
Aherm. Tell Hagrid I'm sorry and that I let him down. Tell your mum not to cry and that she shouldn't because I'm saving your lives. Make sure Hermione and Ginny don't cry either. I don't want to upset anyone. If anyone starts to get sad or depressed, just tell them that I'm with my parents and Sirius now. Tell them that I'm where I want to be and that I don't have to deal with all of these things anymore. Tell Dumbledore that I'm sorry he wasted his time on me, along with all of the other professors. Except for Snape. Tell him to go jump into the Amazon River starky. There are piranha in there, you know, mate. Fun fun for him. Oh yeah. I want you to have my Firebolt. I also want you to have my fortune in Gringott's. I won't be needing it now, and your family isn't that well money wise. Make sure that Fred and George keep making joke type like things and candies or whatever. Have a good life, mate.  
  
Harry  
  
There. That was simple enough. That way they knew what he was going to do. And that way they'd know before he did it. Harry didn't know why, but it just felt like they had to know before he did it. He took out a small, cloth bag filled with Floo Powder. He rolled up the piece of parchment and held it together with a single paperclip. He reached into a pocket of his suitcase and pulled out his key allowing him to get money from the wizarding bank. He attached it securely to the parchment and went down the stairs and into the kitchen. He turned the front burner on as high as he could and wondered if the paper would get burnt or not, depending on the order he did things. Normally a person was already in the fireplace before saying anything. Hopefully this would work.   
  
"The Burrow," Harry said clearly before dropping the Floor Powder into the flame just before the parchment. The parchment seemed to slowly fade away and Harry smiled once he had realized it worked. He turned the burner off and saw all three Dursleys looking at him as if he were mad.  
  
"What are you doing?" inquired Uncle Vernon.  
  
"Telling the wizarding world that I intend to kill myself today. What are you doing?" Harry said calmly, walking over to where the knives were kept.   
  
"Yeah right. You don't have the guts to even think about it. You're too afraid to even -" Dudley said, smirking just before Harry picked up a knife and cut himself with it.   
  
"You listen here, boy, you put that knife down right now or else -" Uncle Vernon started, but Harry cut him off.  
  
"Or else what? You'll take away dinner for a week? I won't need dinner when I'm dead, you know!" Harry yelled before dodging the whale they call Dudley and running up the stairs. He had set the knife down on the counter so the Dursleys didn't follow him. He ran up to the bathroom and took a long bit of toilet paper and pressed it hard against his new wound. He didn't want to die that way. He had decided that it would be too painful and it would take to long. Before he would know it, the Weasleys would be there and they'd ruin his whole plan. He opened the medicine cabinet just above the sink. He looked at a few bottles of pills before he found the strongest ones. Harry smiled at the label which read; 1000 MG: DO NOT TAKE MORE THAN ONE. Harry popped off the top and grabbed one of the wimpy paper cups that Aunt Petunia had put inside of the bathroom. He filled it to the top with water and popped a few of the giant sized pills into his mouth. He chased them down with the entire cup of water and did this for a while until the bottle of pills was finally empty.   
  
Harry sighed and sat down on the toilet, glad that it was almost over. He kind of felt sick, but more relaxed then anything. He smiled to himself. No more pain for anyone. Sure, they'd be sad for a little while, but they'd get over it. And they'd all be safe because they no longer had to worry about Harry getting into trouble. His mum and dad and Sirius would make sure that he didn't get in trouble now.   
  
Harry's head began to hurt a bit and at first he thought that he should take some aspirin. He laughed at this thought. He had just taken some pills, why not more? Nah, at least they should be able to know what he decided to do it with. He suddenly felt like he should lie down. Hmm, I'm really tired. I might as well just lay down and go to sleep right here. I hope Dudley doesn't come in here and step on me. Why didn't they ever clean the ceiling? I wonder what Hagrid's going to say. I wonder what 'Mione's going to say. Snape'll probably leap for joy. I hope Hagrid doesn't cry. He'd drown them.   
  
He began to feel very tired and began to feel more and more sick. Maybe I shouldn't have taken so many. Ugghh, I think I might throw up. I hope I die before that happens. He turned over onto his side and decided that the floor was not comfortable at all. He got up, moaning, and decided to lay down in the tub. Then he decided that the light was too bright and shut the curtain. Now this is nice. Kind of chilly, but hey, it goes up perfectly for my head. Hmm. I really would have thought that it would be a whole lot different to die. Hey, I'm breathing differently. Kind of slower. Really slower. Ah well. I'm getting tired anyways.   
  
Harry turned onto his side so his back was facing the curtain and closed his eyes and fell asleep.   
  
A cool hand was rubbing his back and he liked it very much. Harry felt the cool hand leave his back and felt it once more against his face. He gently rubbed his cheek against it, feeling very tired still.   
  
"Good morning, dear," said a gentle voice quietly. Harry slowly opened his eyes and a woman helped him put on his glasses. "There you are, dearie, now you an actually see me." At first, all Harry had saw was red hair and instantly thought - hoped that it was his mum. But when he heard her voice and saw her face he realized that it wasn't her. He didn't even know this woman.   
  
"Who are you?" Harry asked, slurring his words slightly.   
  
"I'm Hallie Calson, dear, I was assisting during your surgery." Harry's mind wasn't rightly functioning yet.   
  
"What? I didn't have any surgery," he said, still waking up.   
  
"You did, but you most certainly wouldn't remember it. You were very much unconscious when they brought you here," chuckled the woman. "You had to have your stomach pumped, dear. But don't you worry about that just yet, dearie, you just get comfortable again and I'll bring you up something to eat, okay? But right now, all you have to do is stay comfy and content and kind of awake. Well, unless you're still sleepy. Then you can go to sleep. Mind that your visitors would probably be a bit upset, seeing as they've been here all through the night." Harry moaned at the thought of dealing with everyone.   
  
"Why?" he asked her before she left.   
  
"Why what, dear?" she asked kindly back.  
  
"Why couldn't you have let me die? I knew what I was doing, I nearly had it. Then you had to come ruin all my plans," Harry said a bit bitterly. She simply shrugged.  
  
"Sorry, dear, but I don't think that death is much of a plan when you're only sixteen. Besides, I was on shift and I refuse to have someone mess up my record by dying," she said, flashing a smile at him before she left.  
  
Suddenly, the door opened a peek and Ron slid into the room very quietly. He went over to the farthest chair in the room and didn't say anything for a long while. Finally, he sighed. "Mum's really worried about you now."   
  
"Yeah, well, she wouldn't be worried about me if you guys would have let me go on with it," Harry said vulgarly. Ron sighed and looked down at his hands.   
  
"We couldn't. Mate, Hermione and Ginny were in tears as soon as they read the first few words. You never write that everything is fine there. It's always something with that whale or the whale's father or the horse. Besides, we'd be out a Seeker this year," Ron said, trying to make the conversation lighter. Harry didn't even move. "Yeah, well, you know how I am with words and whatnot. I got the shortest straw, you see. Well, no, that's not entirely true. You see, Neville was here, too, and he got the shortest straw, but we were all afraid that he'd say something to mess it up so I had to go.  
  
"Well, how're you feeling, mate?" Ron went on, trying to get Harry to talk more.  
  
"I'd be better had some things not happened," he said, not looking at Ron. Ron sighed loudly and got up.  
  
"Well, Harry, I'm so sorry for saving your life! I just thought that - well, your parents wouldn't be too pleased with the way you went and also that there isn't a better guy in the world! So sorry for being your friend, my lord," he said before storming out of the room and slamming the door behind him.   
  
Harry now sat alone in the white room. He didn't want to be alone, but he didn't want to be with people either. He knew that everyone would just think him a coward for trying to kill himself.   
  
The door opened again, and Harry pretended to be asleep. He felt someone sit down.   
  
"Harry, I know you're awake," came Lupin's calm voice.  
  
Harry peeked one eye open. "Crap. How did you know?" "Well, it could be that Ron just came out complaining that you'd turned into a completely different person. I'm not a psychiatrist, but I'm quite sure that there's something going on up there to make you want to end your life," said Lupin.   
  
"It doesn't matter. It didn't work, and now Dumbledore is going to have everyone watching me every second of every day so I can't try it again," Harry said bitterly. Lupin shrugged.  
  
"I dunno about that, Harry. For a while, yes, that may be how things will go, but after a while he'll call us off and let you have your peace and quiet. You should have seen how pale Dumbledore had gotten once we had found out. You chose an excellent time to send it, as there was an Order meeting taking place," Lupin said, sighing.   
  
"Crap. Mrs. Weasley didn't cry, did she?" Harry said, turning around so he could see Lupin. Lupin chuckled.  
  
"It was a bit of a tie between her and Hagrid," he laughed, making Harry have to work to hold back his laughter. "Just between you and me, I think Hagrid nearly drown us."   
  
"I was thinking about that earlier yesterday. I was hoping that he wasn't going to cry," Harry said, sighing.   
  
"Well, you see, Hagrid is kind of - don't you dare tell him that I said this - but he's kind of, er, girly. But in a really manly way," Lupin said, making Harry laugh out loud. Lupin chuckled as well. "Well, you know that as soon as you look at him he's a real man, but then he starts to cry and, well…"   
  
"I never realized that you were such an evil little man," Harry laughed.   
  
"I am not evil! I just tell the truth," Lupin said, turning pink.  
  
"Yeah, but you tell the mean truth!" Harry protested. He shrugged.  
  
"Hey, I was one of the Marauders, remember?" he said, sighing.   
  
"Guess you're the only one left now, huh?" Harry said, thrown back into his depressed self. Harry was expecting Lupin to try to cheer him up.   
  
"Well, guess I am. Merlin, I've never really thought about it that way before. Moony, Padfoot, Wormtail, and Prongs. Well, it kind of goes in order, now doesn't it. Prongs went first, and Wormtail was the one who did it. Then Padfoot, leaving only Moony to linger in their memories. Even when it was just Padfoot and me, I'd think about who would be the next to go. I hoped beyond hope that it'd be me," Lupin said, starting to talk to mostly just himself.   
  
"So, you're suicidal?" Harry asked, his eyes wide at how such a quiet man would want to die. Lupin looked up and chuckled.  
  
"No, no, no, Harry. You see, the thought of me having to live without my friends for the rest of my life is too unbearable. No one would be there to talk to me, to play pranks on me, to flick my nose and make me look like a fool, to force me to kiss a girl… Merlin, I could go on all day. But you see, Harry, I didn't want to be the one who suffered alone. But I was stupid," Lupin scoffed. "What am I saying, was. Finally, I realized that I was being selfish because I wanted myself to die, yes, but the thing I would be running from would land onto Padfoot. And just the thought of harming my friends makes me all - er…" Lupin said, looking for the right word. Harry looked down at his hand and saw his hand begin to shake.  
  
"Twitchy?" he finished, making Lupin look at him oddly and the down at his hand. He laughed.   
  
"Ah, yes. Would you look at that? I'm twitchy and it's really quite amusing! Wow, look at it go," Lupin said, making Harry laugh out loud. "Hey, don't laugh at my stupidity, I'm special! My momma says I'm special!" Lupin said, making Harry howl with laughter.   
  
"You're so weird," Harry said after catching his breath.  
  
"You have no idea," Lupin said, making Harry laugh again.   
  
"I never actually thought that you were actually, cool. I thought that you were occasionally cool, but not like this kind of cool," Harry said, chuckling.   
  
"So what? I'm not cool anymore? Or am I cool just now? Or was I cool before now and I just didn't know it? It's a mystery," Lupin said, making Harry chuckle. "The point I'm trying to make, Harry, is that you can't be unhappy forever. And you can't go around trying to kill yourself, either. And you just simply couldn't have waited for a few more days? Hagrid was going to tell you that he was going to go adopt a kid from an orphanage! Geez, you ruined it for the poor chap. Ah well. He was hoping that the lot of us would help him choose the right one."   
  
"What? Hagrid wants to be a dad? I kind of pictured him more of the babying mummy type," Harry said, thinking this over.   
  
"Just curious, why did you try to do yourself in both was? I mean, pills and cutting?" Lupin asked, looking at the floor. Harry looked at him oddly for a moment.  
  
"Oh! You mean this?" Harry asked, putting his now-bandaged arm up. Lupin nodded after he had looked up. "Oh, no, that wasn't my plan. I just did it because Dudley was telling me that I wasn't brave enough to kill myself. Soon as I cut myself, that shut him up right away. He looked like he was going to wet himself."   
  
"Ah. Well, brace yourself, Harry, I'm going to let in the whole group. Prepare for hugs and crying," Lupin said, getting to his feet after patting Harry's knee bracingly. He opened the door and spoke to the people on the other side. Instantly, Lupin was pushed down by a red-haired woman with menopause. Harry soon found himself in a forest of red hair.   
  
"You - poor - baby!" Mrs. Weasley sobbed, squeezing him. It was only at this time that he realized that his stomach was hurting very badly.   
  
"Ow, Mrs. Weasley, I like my organs. Please let me keep them, don't make them squish out of me," Harry said, trying to find an exit from the forest. Mrs. Weasley instantly let go of Harry and began fussing over him.   
  
"Poor darling, it's all right, you're okay. Don't worry, you're okay," she fretted, gently tucking him in and giving him gentle hugs and kisses on the forehead. All the while, Harry was simply trying to get her attention.  
  
"Mrs. Weasley… Mrs. Weasley… Mrs. Weasley, please… I'll pay you, Mrs. Weasley… Please? Mr. Weasley, save me?" Harry said through the forest of hair. Mr. Weasley went over and began to pull Mrs. Weasley off of Harry.  
  
"Come on, Molly, dear, let Harry breathe. Come on, love, come here. Molly, come here!" he said, struggling to get Mrs. Weasley off of him.   
  
"He - needs - love!" she said, clinging onto Harry.   
  
"I - need - air!"   
  
"Mum, stop being weird. I know it's kind of hard for you, but just try, will you?" said Fred, and instantly Mrs. Weasley stopped and started at him.   
  
"Run, Fred, run!" Harry said quickly, and Fred took his advice.   
  
"Don't you dare run from me, Fredrick Arthur Weasley!" Mrs. Weasley said, striding over to him.   
  
"Run, boy, run!" said Mr. Weasley, pushing him out of the door.   
  
"Where?!" Fred asked, coming back through the door.  
  
"The men's room! The men's room!" Harry said quickly.   
  
"I've been in there before! I've seen what you lot have to hide and trust me, it isn't all that flattering towards you!" Mrs. Weasley said, tailing Fred. She shut the door behind her.   
  
"Well that's something you see, well, basically every day now, but ah well," Mr. Weasleys said sighing. "So, Harry, how're you feeling?"   
  
"I just got my stomach pumped and your wife just tried to squeeze all of my organs out. Pretty good, actually," Harry said, chuckling slightly. "Tired as hell, though."   
  
"I'd expect so," chuckled Hagrid. "Molly gives pretty rough hugs."   
  
All of a sudden, the door opened, and in hurried a small girl, who looked to be about two years of age. She had bright blond hair and green eyes. Giggling, she toddled about until -   
  
"Owie!" the little girl said. She'd fallen over Hagrid's foot. Hagrid looked completely horrified.   
  
"Oh, sorry, little tyke, sorry. Are you okay? Are yeh sure? Yer at the right place ter get an owie," Hagrid said concernedly, helping the toddler to her feet.   
  
"Tank 'oo," she said, and ran about until she hurried over to the corner, smiling.   
  
The door opened again. This time, a much older girl entered. She had blue-green eyes and brown hair that went down to her shoulders. She had tan skin and didn't completely look like a normal girl, but Harry dared not say anything.   
  
"Oh, I'm sorry. But I think I lost a little monster in here somewhere," she quickly apologized.   
  
"Not at all," Lupin said with a smile toward the little girl.   
  
"Come on, Kaylee, time for bathy," said the older girl.  
  
"No!" protested the little girl as she ran behind Dumbledore. He chuckled as he bent over and picked her up.   
  
"Now, now, my dear, good little girls have to take their baths to be good little girls. Um, that didn't make any sense, did it?" Dumbledore said, getting a shake of the head from the little girl. "In short, take your bath, please, sweetie."   
  
"'Kay," the little girl said, making the older one sigh.  
  
"All right, Kaylee, we need to get our priorities together, okay? You'll listen to someone who you've never even seen before, but you won't listen to the person who takes care of you? Somehow I think I'm just being used," she said, getting chuckles from the room.   
  
"Like a tissue," Kaylee replied, smiling at the older girl. More chuckles were heard.  
  
"All right, little miss, you need to have an issue tissue because no matter how much you're trying to charm these people, they aren't going to save you from your bath," the older one said, sighing.   
  
"B-But, dey wove me! Dey w-wouldn't let me g-get da baff!" said the little girl, making more chuckles heard.   
  
"They don't love you. They think you're a weird little nuisance who's afraid of the tub. Come on, you weirdo, before we both get in trouble," the older girl said, giving her bottom a tap so she'd get moving through the door. "Hup to, small one."  
  
"Excuse me, but - er, you don't work here, do you?" Harry asked, feeling himself start to blush.  
  
"Oh no. I'm turning sixteen in two weeks, so I really can't works here yet. Also the fact that I've never even touched a wand before would make me incapable of being a Healer," the girl said, smiling pleasantly.  
  
"Why haven't you even touched a wand? Haven't you ever gone to a wizarding school? Or if you didn't then at least your parents would teach you," Hermione said, looking curious. The girl chuckled.  
  
"Well, first off my parents dumped me in an orphanage before they could even name me, so I doubt that they're going to come teach me magic," the girl said, making Hermione's eyes go wide.  
  
"Merlin, I'm so, very sorry! I didn't mean to -" she started but the girl shook her head.  
  
"No, no, it's fine. Besides, you can't miss what you can't remember, right?" the girl said, smiling. Harry could tell that it was a hollow smile, he'd been using the same smile ever since a few months ago. "But in short, no headmaster would want me in their school."   
  
"Why? If you're a real prankster or something then you could probably go to Hogwarts. Fred and George were twin pranksters, and now they own a joke shop! Well, then again, they dropped out of school, so…" Harry said, thinking about this. The girl laughed.  
  
"Thanks for your concern, Harry, but that's not it. Though I do love the occasional pranks and being at Hogwarts where the Weasley twins actually found all of the secret passageways and pulled every trick there is would be quite breathtaking, but as I said, no one would want me in school," the girl said, sighing as if that was something that she really wanted.   
  
"Albus, surely she can -" started McGonagall.  
  
"I'd be more than happy to except you to Hogwarts, my dear, but if you've not even a wand then you wouldn't know all that the other students would. How about this? Me and the other professors will take out all of the tests we're doing for all of the grades and pour all of the questions into one very large, exhausting test? If you get a good enough score, then you can come to Hogwarts. Mind that you have less than three months to learn all of this information," Dumbledore said, the twinkle bright in his eyes. The girl shook her head.  
  
"Sorry, sir, but I just don't have enough time. I have to take care of all of the others at the orphanage and there's still Muggle school and everything else in the world. I'd really love to, but I simply don't have the time," the girl said, catching Kaylee before she ran out the door. "Nope, no, no no, Kaylee, you're still getting your bath today. You don't want to be a stinky little girl, now do you?"   
  
Just then, the loudspeaker came on. "Iris Hazel, please come to the Information Desk, you have to do some paperwork. Iris Hazel to the Information Desk."   
  
Harry was looking up at the ceiling when the announcement was on. When he looked down he saw that the girl had large, odd things coming from her head. They were where her ears were supposed to be. They looked kind of like Dobby's ears. The girl blushed when she realized that everyone was staring at her. She quickly left, her face completely red. Harry was released from the hospital a few days later, and he was now more miserable than usual. Everyone was constantly watching him. They'd never give him two minutes rest from talking to him. Even when he went out of the Burrow for a walk or something, someone would always insist on coming, even after he had told them that he'd rather be alone. Mrs. Weasley had made sure to take all of the medicines out of the house and made Mr. Weasley lock up all the knives and round off every corner. At the moment, Ron and Hermione were going on about school and meaningless things. Harry wasn't really listening anymore. He would simply nod if they stopped and looked at him.   
  
"What do you think about Lupin teaching again, Harry?" Hermione asked, and she and Ron both looked at him intently.  
  
"Uh huh," Harry replied, not listening.  
  
"Harry! Do you even know what we're talking about?" Hermione said, chuckling a bit.  
  
"Uh huh."  
  
"Then what is it?" Hermione said, crossing her arms over her chest.  
  
"Uh huh."   
  
"Uggghhh! Ron, go give Harry a swirly, maybe that'll wake him up a bit! Why don't you two go out flying or something? I have to work on getting Hagrid's new class book open. It's worse than the Monster Book of Monsters. It had teeth even on the spine! It's horrid. I'm going to go tell Mrs. Weasley to keep the bandages handy while you two go fly about on your brooms," Hermione said, getting up. Harry sighed and got up with Ron and went to go get their brooms. Harry wasn't feeling like doing anything again. Since Sirius had died, he had always felt like that. Harry went up with Ron and got their brooms.   
  
"Oh, you boys aren't going out, are you? I know Hagrid will be really disappointed when he finds out that you boys won't be able to help him decide which baby he wants to take back - er, to his hut. Merlin, that is just not right! A baby can't grow up in a hut, it's not right!" Mrs. Weasley said, sighing. "He's in the kitchen, boys, now if you'll excuse me, I have to go clean something." Harry and Ron ran into the kitchen and found Hagrid sitting at the table, looking quite excited.   
  
"Hi Harry, hi Ron," he said. Harry noticed that Hagrid had obviously tried to look nice. It seemed to be a reverse effect, however. Hagrid had tried combing his mane, which had ended up with some spots very fluffy while the others were just very snarly. He'd kept on his normal clothes, and Harry decided this was a very good thing as he was suddenly reminded of the big hairy yellow tuxedo that he'd tried to impress Madam Maxime with.   
  
"You look - er - nice, Hagrid," Ron said. Hagrid grinned. What he didn't know, however, was that Ron had his fingers crossed beneath his back.   
  
"Thanks. I'm jus' so excited. The lady tha' runs the orphanage says she really likes me. A really nice person, she is. An' it's right good o' her ter let me take one o' the kids. I reckon not many people would like me havin' a kid o' my own, 'cause of, well, what I am," Hagrid said happily.   
  
Just then, Hermione walked inside the kitchen and set the new Care of Magical Creatures book on the table. She'd used two belts to hold it down.   
  
She smiled at Hagrid. "I'm really happy for you, Hagrid, but I wonder if you really know what you're getting yourself into," she said.   
  
"Hermione, I'm tickled tha' yer so concerned, but I've handled a baby dragon, a three-headed dog, Aragog, and Grawp. A kid shouldn' be all tha' hard," Hagrid chuckled.   
  
Mrs. Weasley walked in and began cleaning. "Oh, Hagrid, dear, a child is nothing like a mon-, erm, I mean, a pet. They need much more attention and love. Old Molly will help you," she said, gently patting his hand.   
  
"And you'll need to stay off the mead, Hagrid," added Hermione.   
  
"Yeah, o' course. I'll only have a sip if the tyke is asleep or summat," Hagrid said solemnly. 


	2. Surprises

"And what are you going to do when you have classes, Hagrid? Take it with you? Or are you planning on an older kid?" Ron asked curiously.   
  
Harry laughed and nudged him. "Stop it, Mrs. Weasley," he said.   
  
Hagrid laughed as well. "I'm thinkin' 'bout five or six years old. Prob'ly a boy. They're the funnest," he said.   
  
"Oh, you may think they're fun, Hagrid, but they're very energetic. The fun wears off after a trial run," Mrs. Weasley warned.   
  
"Ah well. I'm not that old yet. I'll manage," Hagrid said.   
  
Within about twenty minutes, they arrived at the orphanage, which was a large Victorian house not far from the Weasley house. As soon as they arrived in the gravel driveway, they were greeted by a plump lady who looked to be about Mrs. Weasley's age.  
  
"Hello. Hagrid, so nice to see you again," said the woman. She smiled at Ron, Hermione, Harry, Lupin, and Mrs. Weasley. "Sorry, I don't think we've all met."   
  
"Oh, of course. How rude. I'm Molly Weasley, and this is my son, Ron. This here is Hermione, and that's Harry. Oh, sorry, Remus, I didn't see you there. And this is Remus Lupin," Mrs. Weasley quickly said.   
  
The woman smiled and shook each other their hands. "Nice to meet you. Would you like some tea? It's a bit warm for herbal, but maybe iced tea would be best," she said. "Oh, by the way, I'm Maggie."   
  
Maggie quickly let them into the house, which was literally crawling with children. Many were about four through ten years old. A set of twin girls, about one year old and wearing matching yellow outfits, waddled unsteadily about. Mrs. Weasley looked to be in heaven.   
  
"Oh, look at you little darlings. Hi there, sweethearts," she cooed to the twins. They looked up, and Harry saw that they had bright blue eyes, as well as blond hair. "Oh, I might just steal you."   
  
Maggie laughed. "Almost everyone that comes here says that about these two. But in truth, they are little terrors. When one cries, the other cries. It's a chain reaction like that with some of the triplets and other twins that are here," said she.   
  
"Iris, dear, go make some iced tea for our guests," she called.   
  
"Yes, Maggie. How many people?" came a girl's voice.   
  
"Um… One, two, three… Um, seven, dear. Eight if you'd like to include yourself," said Maggie. She led them into the dining room, which was almost completely devoid of children, which seemed surprising.   
  
"Er, just to be nosy, why aren't there as many children in here as around the yard and in the sitting room?" inquired Lupin.   
  
"Remus, dear, that's simple. It's like that with a lot of children. Meal times are when the little ones have to sit and behave," explained Mrs. Weasley.   
  
Maggie smiled at her. "I'm impressed," she said.   
  
"Several of my own," replied Mrs. Weasley.   
  
"Well, let's get right down to it, shall we? Hagrid, I know you're not very interested in babies, but they are my pride. Can we just have a quick little peek at them?" Maggie said, almost eagerly. She reminded Harry of Mrs. Weasley without the menopause.   
  
"O' course," Hagrid said chipperly.   
  
She led them up a flight of stairs and into a pink and blue room. There were ten cribs in the room, five on one side, and five on the other.   
  
"This is my nursery. Nap time for all those ten months and younger," Maggie said proudly.   
  
Mrs. Weasley clasped her hands together, looking ecstatic. "Oh, now you have gone and done it. Oh, look at all the little darlings," she cooed.   
  
Something had come over Hermione as well. A soft look came over her eyes and she hurried over to the first crib that she could see and began cooing into it.   
  
"Uh-oh, mate. The maternal instinct on Hermione has kicked in," Harry whispered to Ron, looking at Hermione. There wasn't any response. "Ron?" he asked, and looked over to his left.   
  
Ron had gone off the deep end. He was cooing at a baby somewhere toward the middle. Harry had to clutch at his stomach to keep from falling on the floor with laughter. "Hey, Ron, can I get you your curlers?" he laughed.   
  
Ron looked over from where he was holding the cackling baby up and nuzzling its face. "Huh?" he asked.   
  
"You're a big weenie, Ron!" Harry laughed.   
  
Ron gave him a look. "Oh, shut up, Harry. Look at this. Could you say no to this?" Ron said, holding the baby up by under his arms. A drip of drool hit the ground.   
  
"Er, sure, mate."   
  
"That's Dameon. He's just turned six months old. Such a big boy," Maggie said fondly.   
  
"Taking care of all these children must cost a fortune," Mrs. Weasley said with wide eyes.   
  
"Yes, but I can afford it. A blessing left us plenty of money, such a pity that she died. Left a good fourth of her and her husband's savings while they left the rest to their son," Maggie said, smiling. "And a fourth of it is one half more than we need here."   
  
"What a saint. Do you remember her name?" asked Mrs. Weasley while she stroked a baby's cheek.   
  
"Um, I can only remember her first name. But she had red hair and - erm, big green eyes. A pretty little number, she was. Quite young when she died… Oh, it was 'L' something…"   
  
Harry's eyes widened. "Lily?" he inquired.   
  
"That's it! Lily something… Oh, I can't remember her last name to save my life. Did you know her, dear? Her husband was - erm, rather tall, black hair, and… yellow-brown - hazel eyes," Maggie said, closing her eyes and trying to remember.   
  
Everyone looked rather shocked.   
  
"Did you know her, dear?" inquired Maggie again.   
  
"She - she was my mum," Harry said quietly.   
  
Maggie smiled. "Oh, what are the odds? Oh yes, I can see you have her eyes," she said. "This is rather exciting, isn't it? Well, you should be very proud of your mum, Harry. She was kind and wise beyond her years. Oh, I'm getting all gushy," Maggie said, quickly dabbing at her eyes. "Iris, dear!" she called.   
  
In came a girl of about sixteen. She had brown hair and blue-green eyes. There was something familiar about her… Then Harry saw something peak out from underneath her hair - bat-like ears. It was the girl that they had met at St. Mungo's.   
  
In front of the girl were the two twin girls, wide grins on their faces and they were soaking wet.   
  
"Yes, Maggie?" Iris asked pleasantly.   
  
"Oh dear, what happened?" Maggie asked, crouching down so the twins could waddle over to her.   
  
"Oh, nothing. I just have another two for you, Warden. Caught outside with the hose. I think you can get the rest of it," said Iris. One of the twins waddled over to Iris and hugged her around the knees. "Yes, thank you for getting me wet, sweetie. Now, go on. Go get Alan to get you dry. I'll come with you guys," she said, and led the two out of the nursery. "Come on, you little ducks."   
  
"Quack quack," said one of the twins. She waved at Harry before she left, and Harry wiggled his fingers in a wave.   
  
"Isn't that the girl we met in St. Mun- er, the hospital?" said Ron.   
  
"Yeah, I think it is. She was volunteering, remember? Wow, she volunteers for a lot of things," Hermione said.   
  
Maggie wrinkled her nose. "Iris only helps out at a hospital, Hermione, dear. Iris lives here," she said. This shocked them quite a bit. "Anyway, I want to show you a very special little one," Maggie said, and led them to the crib farthest from the door but closest to the window. She leaned forward and lifted a very small baby out of the crib.   
  
"This is little Emma. Only fwee days ode, huh, Emsy?" Maggie cooed.   
  
"Aww. She's so young," Hermione said, her eyes wide.   
  
"She's only just come home from the hospital. She was just dropped off here today. Mumma couldn't afford poor Baby. But she's a little gem out of the ruff," Maggie said, nuzzling the baby.   
  
"Do you have any children of your own?" Hermione asked curiously.   
  
Maggie shook her head and frowned. "Barren. But that's okay, because I get to watch all of these cuties grow up," she said, hugging the baby to her chest.   
  
The infant newborn had a lot of hair for a baby. It was jet black and messy from her crib. She blinked a few times, and Harry saw that she had emerald green eyes.   
  
Mrs. Weasley laughed. "Aw, Harry, she could be your baby. She looks so much like you."   
  
Harry blushed. "I'm not really thinking of procreating just yet," he chuckled. The baby kicked and yawned, and Harry felt a sudden surge of paternal instinct from somewhere deep within. "But she is adorable," he added.   
  
"Aw, look at the little gem. Er, Maggie, do yeh think I could hold her?" Hagrid said, grinning.   
  
"Of course, Hagrid. There you are. Just hold her head up a little bit more. There. Nice and close to your chest, newborns love body warmth," instructed Maggie.   
  
The infant clung to Hagrid's overcoat with tiny fingers as he cradled her.   
  
"Oh, Hagrid, I think she likes you," Hermione said fondly.   
  
"Tha's okay, 'cause I like her," Hagrid said, smiling at the infant. "Jus' a tiny thing, you are. A bug is p'tentially dangerous ter yeh, huh, Emma?" he cooed.   
  
"I must admit, she's the cutest baby I have here," Maggie said, smiling.   
  
"Cute as a button, sweet as a lamb, and twice as cuddly," Hagrid agreed. He nuzzled the baby's cheek. "Yeh know what? I reckon I'm goin' ter throw all me plans out the window. Emma's only the cutest thing I've ever seen," he said, looking up from the baby.   
  
"You mean you're going to take her instead, Hagrid?" Hermione asked, biting her lower lip.   
  
"I think so. I mean, if it's okay. If she's too little ter go anywhere, I'd understand," Hagrid said, looking over at Maggie.   
  
Maggie grinned. "Oh, no. The sooner she's out of here, the sooner she'll be used to you - though I don't think that's any problem - and a whole new environment. Oh, look at that happy little face. Oh, well, now it's a slobbery little face." Maggie leaned over and wiped the baby's face with her sleeve. "Mind that there's a fair amount of paperwork that you'll have to go through. But it should only take a week or so to get all of the appropriate paperwork. After that it should only take a few more days to get it all done and cleared. Oh, but you'll basically have to fight her sister for her. This is Iris's sister. She's quite protective of her. But I'm sure she'll agree to it once she gets to know you a bit better. Mind that she'd be dropping by just about every day to make sure that her ickle Emmykins is all right. Now where would she be right now? Hmm, probably down by the forest," she said.   
  
She led them out of the house (along with Emma) and out into the backyard, where there was a thick form of trees. Just by the edge of the forest sat Iris, stroking what appeared to be a young hippogriff. It squawked playfully and jumped on her.   
  
Laughing, Iris pulled the hippogriff off of her. It reared back on its hind legs and landed its front half on her lap. "Oof! You silly little thing, you weigh too much. You're not a lap dog! Or any other kind of dog, now are you? Oh, hey Maggie and accomplices and Baby," she said, laughing as she hippogriff nuzzled her face, vying for her attention. "Easy, you weirdo." When Maggie didn't respond, Iris stopped smiling. "Maggie? What's wrong?"   
  
"Why don't you lot go to the kitchen and ask one of the older kids to grab you your tea, all right? I think I better tell her by myself," Maggie said to the large group. They nodded and went back up to the large Victorian house. Maggie seated herself next to Iris and the hippogriff with Emma in her arms.   
  
"What's the matter, Maggie?" Iris questioned, pushing the hippogriff off her. She took her younger sister from Maggie.  
  
"Dear, you know that big bloke, Hagrid? Well, he's decided to take Emma," Maggie said gently.   
  
The words resounded in Iris's mind emptily. Her ears perked up. "What? He - he wants my Emma? Well, you told him no, didn't you, Maggie?" she said quickly, holding the baby protectively.   
  
Maggie sighed and put her hand on Iris's thigh. "Iris, dear, this may be her only chance to get out of here. And Hagrid is so kind and so good with her. She already loves him, Iris. And if I don't let Hagrid take her away from here, there's a very good chance that she'll have to grow up in the orphanage like you did," she said.   
  
"No!" Iris said, jumping to her feet, Emma safely cradled in her arms. "No, Maggie, you can't let this happen! I've got two more years of school! I can raise her myself! Just keep her here, Maggie, please!" Iris found that there were tears in her eyes, but she didn't bother to brush them away. "He doesn't know her! Maggie, just watch her during the days. I'll pay you!" pleaded Iris.   
  
Maggie remained sitting. "Iris, dear, I don't have a choice. I guarantee you that you can't find a sweeter person than Hagrid. He's even a professor at Hogwarts, you know," she said.   
  
Iris paced for a while, thinking this over. The baby in her arms flopped a bit, and Emma squealed happily. "Shush," she told the infant. Iris stopped pacing. "Fine. If you're not going to listen to me, then I'm leaving. I'll start a new life somewhere else with Emma. Well, soon," she decided.   
  
Before Maggie could respond, Iris had already started off at a trot. She wrenched the door open, and kept running with the baby humming to herself all the way to the kitchen. She looked around, and soon found the one called Hagrid, sitting down and enjoying a sandwich.   
  
Iris looked down at her little sister, who was trying to get drops of water off of her. It was then that Iris realized that she was crying. Iris quickly wiped her eyes on the back of her hand. She strode over and set Emma in Hagrid's lap. Hagrid instinctively dropped the sandwich and grabbed the baby. He looked curiously up at Iris. She noticed that everyone was looking at her.   
  
"Look. I have no clue who you are, and I'm not agreeing to this, but I want to try something. Let her sit with you for a minute," Iris said. Hagrid looked apologetic, and was going to say something, but decided against it. Instead, he lifted up the baby and lay her against his chest.  
  
The baby snuggled up against Hagrid's chest and 'hmphed' contentedly.   
  
Iris leaned over and picked the baby. She then set Emma down in Harry's lap. Emma began sniffling and sobbing softly. Iris picked the baby up and put her near Hagrid. Her cries soon stopped.   
  
Iris looked horribly disappointed. "Very well then," she said. She was obviously trying to choke back tears. "I guess she's yours."   
  
Without another word, Iris quickly left the room. She ran up the stairs and into her room. She shared it with seven other girls, so there were four bunk-beds. She locked the door and really didn't care if one of the other girls needed to get in there. She hurried to her bed on the bottom bunk and lay down and began to cry. She was losing her only sister, her baby sister. And worse yet, she was losing her to someone she didn't know and she'd probably never see her again.   
  
Meanwhile…  
  
Back downstairs, Hagrid was looking like he was going to cry. Mrs. Weasley was trying her best to comfort him. He sniffled as a large tear rolled off his face and into his mug.  
  
"Oh, there, there, Hagrid, it's all right! Don't cry, it's okay! Hagrid please don't cry! Look, now Emma's crying, Hagrid, give her a hug," Mrs. Weasley said, gently patting his hand.   
  
"I can't take her now. I can' break up a family," Hagrid sniffled. "Bu' I really want her." At this, Hagrid began to actually sob.   
  
"Aww, it's okay, Hagrid. I'm sure Iris'll let you have her eventually. It's just going to take her a little while," Mrs. Weasley assured.   
  
Hagrid sniffled and forced himself to stop sobbing. A tear ran down one of his cheeks and landed on the crying baby's head. Hagrid lightly patted her bottom. "Aw, c'mon now, smile. Don' do as I do, I'm a bad example. Look, tummy kisses," he offered. He lifted her up above his head and began kissing her stomach. Little Emma stopped crying and squealed.   
  
Maggie came into the room, looking quiet somber. When she looked at Hagrid's teary face she 'awwed'. She went over and gave him a hug. "Poor Hagrid. Iris wasn't too hard on you, was she?"   
  
"Nah. All she did was see if Emma really liked me. Bu' I don't think tha' I can really tear those two apart. It's like splittin'' a family apart, which it is," Hagrid said, nuzzling Emma's face. Maggie lightly patted his leg.  
  
"Well, Hagrid, I'm quite sure that she will get over it. As long as she can see her just about every day. But I do believe that you need a bit more of a test, to see if you can handle a demanding newborn. I would very much like it if Emma stayed with you in your hut over night. With someone else in the hut through the night as well, if you wouldn't mind," Maggie said, making Hagrid grin.  
  
"Really? I mean, no paperwork an' no signin' anything b'fore I can take her to me hut?" he asked with wide, hopeful eyes. Maggie chuckled and nodded. "When can I take her?"   
"As soon as we go through things that she needs. First off, she'll get up about every two hours or so, starting at two or one. She'll be hungry and she uses a different kind of bottle, seeing as she's so young. It's got a plastic outside but the inside is just like a bag, basically, and it's filled with - erm, how to say this to you. Um, it's filled with Mummy juice, okay, Hagrid?" Maggie said, finding it hard to say the appropriate word in front of Hagrid. "It also works more like a Mummy. But she'll need a bath in the morning sometime and she'll need to be changed, and not just in clothes. I'll get her diaper bag ready and full of more than enough diapers you'll need to have a happy Emma. Oh, yes, and your little blankey, Emmakins, Maggie can't forget that. Six bags of milk for you as well, Snicklefritz, I'm not quite sure how much you like to eat just yet. And a blanket, maybe a pillow, but a small one. You're not quite fond of those yet," Maggie said, cooing to the baby.   
  
"Hagrid, where are you going to find room in your hut for the baby's crib?" Mrs. Weasley asked curiously.   
  
"Well, I don't exactly have a spare crib in me pocket, Molly. A lot o' everything else, but no crib. I'll make due. There's a perfect li'l space in a drawer o' mine. I can line it with blankets an' all things cushy. I'll make sure the sides are padded an' everything. I can move the whole dresser so it's right near me bed, too," Hagrid said, his eyes widening as his ideas got bigger. "O' course as soon as I can I'll get a decent crib fer the li'l angel. Do yeh think tha' Professor Dumbledore would have me hut increased in size?"   
  
Hermione, Harry, and Ron nodded. "Definitely. I mean, he'd probably give you a goat if she needed it," Harry said, making Hagrid chuckle. "Er - not to be nosey or anything, but I was wondering how big she is."   
  
"Well, sixteen and three-quarters inches, just a tiny baby. And she's three and a half pounds. Just a tiny little thing my Emmykins is, huh, precious?" Maggie cooed, gently stroking the baby's head.   
  
Hagrid's eyes widened. "Why's she so small? Shouldn' she still be in the hospital?" he inquired quickly. "Three an' a half pounds isn't anythin' ter sneeze at."   
  
"The doctors said it was okay that she left because she's also generally healthy. Just very tiny," Maggie said, kissing the baby's cheek.   
  
"Hagrid, you're a bit puzzling. You came here all set to have a four-year old boy and you're getting a newborn baby girl!" Hermione said, giving him a puzzled look.   
  
"Yeah, well, I didn' know she was goin' ter be here. The li'l angel," Hagrid said, grinning.   
  
Harry saw Iris walk hurriedly by the room, and quickly followed.   
  
"Where are you going, Harry?" inquired Mrs. Weasley concernedly.   
  
Harry rolled his eyes. "Off to do myself in," he muttered so nobody could hear. "Bathroom," he said.   
  
"To your left and the second door on your right," Maggie said pleasantly.   
  
"Thanks," Harry mumbled before hurrying out of the room. Iris was walking quickly, and Harry had to jog to keep up. "Hey!" he called.   
  
Iris stopped and turned around. "What?" she asked.   
  
"Hagrid is my friend and he's a damn good person and why don't you trust him with your sister?" Harry demanded.   
  
"Look. I'm sure he's an okay person. But he's taking my sister. I've had a few hours to myself with her, and that's it. And you expect me to hand her over without any argument? I won't be able to look at her again without wishing that she was mine and only mine. He has her for the rest of her life. I only had her for a couple of hours. Think about it," Iris said simply before walking away.   
  
This time, however, Harry didn't go after her. Instead, he walked back to the nursery where Hagrid was cradling and cooing at Emma. Emma seemed to be enjoying this as she sucked happily on a pacifier, which looked much too big for her minute mouth.   
  
"Who's jus' a pretty girl, Emma?" Hagrid cooed.   
  
"Hmmm," Emma cooed back.   
  
"Yeah, yeh know yeh're pretty. Yeh're jus' bein' modest, huh?" Hagrid said, giving the baby a whiskery kiss on the cheek. Before he could pull back, Emma had grabbed onto his hair and was nuzzling against his hair. Hagrid laughed and kissed her forehead. "Precious," he said, looking at her. The newborn stopped and looked up at him with wide green eyes. She yawned and gave everyone a perfect view of her gums.  
  
Mrs. Weasley seemed to break at this. "Oh, you're going to be such a little heartbreaker, my darling. Come here to Auntie Molly," she said. Mrs. Weasley took Emma from Hagrid, who looked hesitant.   
  
"Dust a wittle angel baby, huh, Emma? Do 'oo have a middle name, popkin?" Mrs. Weasley cooed, nuzzling the baby's face.   
  
"No, she only got a first name from her mummy. So, Hagrid, you have to give Emma here a middle name," Maggie said, beaming at Hagrid. His brow furrowed.  
  
"Hmm. I think tha' Lee would fit this beauty best, don't yeh think? Harry, why are yeh lookin' so down? Yer no' thinking' o' - er…" Hagrid said, noticing Harry's frown and look of utter boredom. Harry rolled his eyes.  
  
"No, Hagrid, just thinking about what Iris said, if it makes much difference," Harry said, looking even more bored if possible.   
  
"What? What did she say, Harry?" Maggie said, looking very interested.   
  
"She's pissed because Hagrid's going to have her for the rest of Emma's life while she only got to see her for a few hours and about how she's not going to be able to see her again not wishing that she was with her," Harry said dully.   
  
"Well, o' course she's goin' ter see Emma. It's not like I'm heartless. Iris can come an' see the baby whenever she wants," Hagrid said. "Well, it might not be in my bes' interest if she came in the middle o' the night, but tha's okay too."   
  
Maggie got Hagrid everything that he'd need to take care of Emma with. Harry and Hermione were to stay with Hagrid that night, to help him with Emma. Hagrid was overjoyed when they were about to leave, as he was helping bundle Baby Emma up.   
  
"Aww, yeh look jus' like a li'l marshmallow, Emsy," Hagrid cooed, gently stroking her cheek. "So we're takin' the Knight Bus back? All righ', then, kiddo, yer goin' ter sit in me lap so yeh don't go flyin' out the window, 'kay? 'Kay."   
  
"Oh, look at the little precious angel. Isn't she just darling?" Mrs. Weasley said, beaming at the tiny infant.   
  
"Thanks, Maggie. I'll bring her back 'round eleven. I'll send an owl if I've got any problems tha' this lot can't help me with," Hagrid said, holding the baby on his hip so he could shake Maggie's hand. As he did, Emma contented herself with digging around in his pockets. She began pulling something out that squeaked loudly in protest. When she did, Harry saw that she had a scaly bald tail in her tiny fist. She shook it happily.   
  
Harry hurried over and picked the baby up, putting the supposed rat back in Hagrid's pocket. Emma was now looking at her hand, which had a scraggly scratch on it. She began sniffling.   
  
Harry bounced the baby girl gently and tried to calm her. "Ssh, come on, now. It's okay. Here, let me see, Emma, let me see. Well that's not so bad. But it must sting, considering that this is probably your first owie, huh?" he said gently.   
  
Mrs. Weasley hurried over. "Oh, poor baby. Hold still, angel. Immendo. There, that's better, isn't it? And you don't even have a little scar! Look at that," she cooed gently. There was loud rapping at the window and Harry saw Fawkes standing outside the window. Mrs. Weasley took the little girl from Harry so he could get to Fawkes. The large bird flew into the room and affectionately nipped at Harry's ear. He stuck out his foot which had a piece of parchment attached. Harry opened it up and read aloud:   
  
"Hagrid or anyone else you is reading this, Firstly, Hagrid, congratulations on your new little boy. You said that he would be about six or so, so I cannot wait until he is eleven years old and when he can start school here. Everyone, and when I say everyone, I mean it, is in the staff room waiting for you to tell us about your new little boy. Maybe a few hundred pictures of so would satisfy our growing curiosity. If possible, it would make us all feel much better if you would be able to borrow the little boy for a hour or two. Congratulations once more, Hagrid. Dumbledore."   
  
Hagrid chuckled. "Well aren't there goin' ter be a few surprised faces when they take a look at yer cute little face, huh? Probably even more surprised when they take a peek in yer diaper. Oh, wait, I nearly fergot, yeh li'l cutie. I brough' summat fer yeh. If I can only find it," Hagrid dug around in his pockets for a little while before pulling out a black and white cow with small horns. It was a plush toy and it made Mrs. Weasley aww. He very gently took Baby Emma from her and cradled her in one arm while he gently rubbed the cow against her cheek. She hummed a little bit and then tried to hold it.   
  
"Watch this, Emma," Hagrid said, beaming as he squeezed the cow's middle. MOOOO! went the cow. Emma's eyes went wide and she squealed. Everyone chuckled at this. Hagrid carefully handed the infant the cow. The kitchen door opened and an unexpected face came through the door, holding a stuffed bear.  
  
Iris was looking at the floor as she handed Hagrid the bear. "It's the only thing I have of our mum's. I think she needs it more than I do." Just after saying this, she ran up the stairs, trying her best to see through the tears. Hagrid looked down at the bear. Stuffing was coming out of its ear as part of it had been torn away. Harry had noticed that at the bottom of Iris's ear there was a bit of her ear missing.   
  
Hagrid took the cow from Emma, getting a squeal of anger from her. He then handed her the bear which was nearly as big as she was. Emma looked at it for a moment and then began sucking on its paw. Hagrid smiled, though he looked sad when he did.   
  
"Looks like the li'l tyke likes it," he said softly. "Aherm. Well, best be off, then. Don' want her fallin' asleep b'fore we get teh the castle. Thanks again, Maggie, we'll see yeh termorrow," he said, shaking her hand once more.   
  
"Not at all, Hagrid. All I did was keep her here for a few hours. You're the one that she likes. Bye, sweetheart. Have fun," Maggie said, leaning over and giving Emma a kiss on the cheek. "She'll be needing a bottle fairly soon, Hagrid, but it would be a bit of a snack, not dinner quite yet. It's only five. She usually likes dinner at about seven, just as she's going to sleep." Maggie sighed. "Oh, Hagrid, thank you so much for taking her. You may be her only chance out of here. Iris grew up here ever since she was born, quite literally. Five minutes after she was born, her mother already had the father going out for the adoptions papers. Of course, he never wanted to give her up. He's exactly like Iris is, but he's got the reddest hair I have ever seen. Poor bloke was heartbroken. No doubt that if he's still with her he's going to simply break down. Ah well. You'll seen them when the final papers come through. There always has to be at least one meeting with the parents if possible. Now, you be good, Little Miss Emma. And don't keep Hagrid up for too long or else he'll get up late and you'll have bweakfast wate, Baby Bumpkins."   
  
"I have to say, Maggie, that you are the bravest woman I have ever known. I always thought that Mrs. Weasley was for having seven kids. But I have to give it to you, ma'am, you are the bravest for taking on so many kids at once," Hermione said, smiling at Maggie.  
  
"Hermione, dear, please don't call me 'ma'am'. It makes me sound like I was a grandmum. Now Hagrid, don't think that you have to stick to what I told you exactly. Feel free to put her down for a nap, mind that she might not sleep as well during the night. If she's a bit extra hungry, give her a bottle. And it really wouldn't hurt her all that much if she had a little chocolate milk. She might get cranky every so often, but just pat her bottom or rub her back and she'll be fine. It's been nice meeting you, Molly, Remus, Harry, Ron, Hermione, but the worst part of the day has nearly come and I still have to think of something to feed everyone. Alan, Nick, Danny, Iris, Tammy, you lot are in charge of choosing what I'm giving to everyone tonight! You choose it, I'll make it! And don't exclude Iris this time, just because she's a vegetarian doesn't mean that she doesn't have an opinion! Scratch that, we're eating vegetarian tonight, so depend on Iris for help!" Maggie called up the stairs.   
  
She turned back to the group. "About the night their parents come over, whatever night would be best for you, Hagrid. Oh, and feel free to bring many other people. I'm bringing all of the younger ones over to my cousin's house. Well, all of the babies will stay here, but give them a bottle and they'll be happy. So, you and your party will have to tell me your favorites or preferences. Have a nice night," Maggie said as the party started out the door.   
  
During the ride home, Hagrid had held onto Emma very tightly so she wouldn't get hurt. Unfortunately, as they were stopping, Emma got her head hit by a pole. Emma began crying and sobbing and hiccupping and Hagrid was cooing like mad at her. Mrs. Weasley went mad at Stan and Ernie. 


	3. Spending the Night

"DON'T YOU KNOW HOW TO DRIVE THIS THING?!" she bellowed at Ernie. "YOU HURT A BABY, YOU MADMAN! YOU HURT HER PRECIOUS LITTLE HEAD! AND SHE'S ONLY THREE DAYS OLD! AND YOU! WHY COULDN'T YOU HAVE TOLD HIM TO SLOW DOWN A FEW HUNDRED MILES PER HOUR? I MAY NOT KNOW MUCH ABOUT CARS AND VEHICLES, BUT I KNOW THAT YOU CAN EASILY SLOW DOWN! My poor Emmakins, is Baby awe wight?" Mrs. Weasley said, turning very soft and cooing towards the crying Emma.   
  
Stan looked winded. "Sorry, ma'am. Dint mean to - to 'urt 'er or anythin', did we, Ern?"   
  
Ern grunted and shook his head.   
  
After Emma had stopped crying and only sobbed, Hagrid began inspecting the damage. "I don' think it was anythin' ter worry abou', Molly. A bit o' a red mark, but not even a bruise. Don' worry, Emma, old Hagrid's got some dragon meat that'll make the sting go righ' away," he said gently to the baby. He pulled out the teddy bear and let Emma lay up against it. She snuggled up to it.   
  
"Oh, an' this," Hagrid added, and pulled out the plush cow. He squeezed its middle, making Emma look up at the cow. She reached a tiny arm out to it. Hagrid held it right up to her face and nuzzled it against her cheek.   
  
"Yes'm, Emma. Moo moo. Oh, look, he likes yeh. Moo moo moo. I think that means he wants ter be friends. Do yeh want ter be friends with Mr. Cow, Emma? Yeah? Okay, here yeh go. Okay, we're a little closer than friends. Emma, now yeh're goin' too far. Friends don't suck each other's snouts," Hagrid said, smiling at the baby.   
  
"Aw, Hagrid, you're such a good father," Mrs. Weasley said, looking at the baby fondly.   
  
"A better mum, I'd say," Ron whispered to Harry, who chuckled. Stan was still trying to apologize to Mrs. Weasley.   
  
"Why don't Ern an' I takes you up to da castle? Will dat make up fer it?" Stan said, looking over at Mrs. Weasley cautiously.   
  
"Only if you go very slowly!" Mrs. Weasley implored. Stan nodded.   
  
"All righ', Ern, go real slow fer da lady," he said, looking over at Ern. Ern grunted unhappily and the bus began moving at about forty miles per hour. Harry found that this was still fairly fast, but at least they weren't going as fast as normal.  
  
Soon they were headed up to the staff room of Hogwarts. Hermione, Harry, Ron, Lupin, and Mrs. Weasley entered first to try and give them hints about the minute surprise.  
  
"Well? Is he getting his little boy?" Tonks asked immediately. They shook their heads.  
  
"No, he's not getting his little boy, Tonks," Hermione said, barely able to keep her smile to herself.   
  
"Is he getting a child at all, Remus?" McGonagall asked, looking sad for Hagrid already.  
  
"Oh yes, Minerva, he's definitely getting a child," Lupin said, beaming.   
  
"How old is the child, then, Molly?" Mr. Weasley asked.  
  
"Well, it's got something to do with the number three…" Mrs. Weasley said, beaming.   
  
"Aww, a cute little three year old. Not exactly what he was looking for, but still, a tiny little three year old boy!" Ginny said happily.  
  
"Nope," Harry said plainly.   
  
"Nope?" Ginny asked, looking confused.  
  
"Nope. Not three years old," he said simply.   
  
"Oh, a thirteen year old! Albus, we can teach Hagrid's little boy!" McGonagall said, looking slightly giddy.  
  
"Sorry, Professor, but that's not right, either," Ron said, grinning.   
  
"Well then what is it? Bring Hagrid out here, let him tell us!" Fred said, getting impatient. Harry shrugged and opened the door to let Hagrid in.   
  
Hagrid looked more like he had his arms crossed in front of his chest than he was holding a baby.   
  
"Well, Hagrid, where is he?" inquired Mr. Weasley.   
  
"I didn' get a he," Hagrid said, smiling.   
  
"A girl? Where is she?"   
  
"Righ' here."   
  
At this comment, there were many confused faces. Dumbledore, however, only smiled.   
  
"May I hold her, Hagrid?" he asked.   
  
Hagrid looked tickled pink. "O' course, sir, o' course," he said quickly, and walked over.   
  
"Oh, a baby! Hagrid, a baby girl? That's like the opposite of what you were expecting! Oh, but she's adorable," Ginny said, smiling as Hagrid carefully set the baby in Dumbledore's arms.   
  
"How old is she, Hagrid? Three weeks?" McGonagall asked, looking very pleased. She leaned over to admire the baby.   
  
"Three days," Hagrid replied. "Tiny little thing, an' she's already had a rough life. This is jus' a trial run, though. She's stayin' the night with me in me hut, but jus' fer ternight. Harry an' Hermione said they're goin' ter help."   
  
"What is her name?" Dumbledore asked, pushing back the blanket a bit.   
  
"Emma. Lee is her middle name. I made up her middle name," Hagrid said, smiling.   
  
"How clever. Emma Lee Hagrid it's going to be? Well, she certainly doesn't look like you, Hagrid. Well, except the fact that she's got a lot of hair for her age, and it is black," Dumbledore said, smiling down at the baby. Emma yawned. "She looks like someone I remember as a baby," he added, nodding at Harry. Emma kicked a bit and then found Dumbledore's beard. She whimpered a bit as she couldn't reach it. Dumbledore smiled at her.   
  
"All right, m'dear, why don't we just come right on over to Uncle Remus?" Lupin said, gently stroking the baby's head.   
  
"I would have thought that you'd be Uncle Remy, Remus," Tonks said, smirking at him.   
  
"Well, I dunno about that, Nymphadora," Lupin shot back at her.  
  
"Don't say that name! Oh, Hagrid, look at the little angel! She's all squirmy!" Tonks said, peering over Dumbledore's shoulder. "May I hold her, Hagrid? Please?"   
  
Hagrid looked hesitant. "Er - sure, Tonks. Bu' yeh have teh be very careful with her. It migh' be best if yeh sat down with her first." Dumbledore gave the small infant a kiss on the forehead before passing her to Tonks very carefully. Tonks 'awwed' as soon as she got Emma. Tonks screwed up her face and with a small pop! her nose looked like a pig's. Emma was fascinated. She reached her little hand up to try and grab it. Tonks awwed more and put her head down so Emma could admire her nose.   
  
A few minutes more of this and Mad-Eye was rolling his eye. "Tonks, you're going to spoil her with that nose. Come here, give me her," he growled. Tonks looked sad as she handed him the baby. "I know what'll make you happier than pie, Hagrid." Moody took out his false eye, dipped it in a glass of water, and handed it to Emma.   
  
"What are yeh doin', yeh crazy?! Yer goin' ter scar her fer life!" Hagrid fretted.  
  
"Calm down, Hagrid, she likes it," Harry said, looking wide-eyed at the baby with the magical eye. Emma shook it and the pupil hurried around in great circles over the eye. Emma laughed and sucked on it.   
  
"No, no, no, no! That's not good for you, Hagrid. Don't eat my eye," growled Moody, taking the eye away from the child. Emma looked a bit disappointed, but continued looking at Mad-Eye.   
  
"Oh, yuckie, sweetheart. Do you know where that's been? A rather grumpy man's eye socket!" Tonks said, looking piteously at her. "Poor baby."  
  
"Hagrid, this little one is the cutest little one I've ever seen!" Ginny said happily. "Oh, it's kind of good that you don't have any family any more. That way Hagrid can bring you over to the Burrow often so I can cuddle and coo at you."  
  
"Well - er - yeh see, she's still go' family. Really protective family," Hagrid said, looking a bit muddled in his thoughts. "She's go' an older sister, turnin' sixteen in a few days, and she's really protective. I set the poor thing off in tears 'cause she's only had a few hours with Emma. Yeh remember tha' girl tha' we met at the hospital? Yeh know, the one tha' was volunteerin' an' whatnot? Well, she's stayin' at the orphanage with her sister."   
  
"Albus, come now. Can't we just help the poor girl out a little? We could teach her before the school year begins and she can take the same tests that the others did and then when she can go into her sixth year. Please? Please, Albus? She volunteers at St. Mungo's, Albus, that has to count for something!" McGonagall said, her eyes wide.   
  
"I have already offered this to her, Minerva. I doubt that she'll agree to this now," Dumbledore said, sighing.   
  
Hours later, Harry and Hermione were down in Hagrid's hut, setting up sleeping bags by the table. Hagrid was making a bottle for Emma over a burner. The baby sat in the bassinet that Maggie had borrowed him. Emma was hyper just then as she kicked her feet happily. Hermione stopped spreading out their sleeping bags and went and cooed at Emma for a while.  
  
"Who's just a wittle baby boo? Emma is! Emma Wee Hagwid! Hagrid, can I hold her, please?" Hermione said, making the baby squeal.   
  
"O' course, 'Mione, go righ' ahead," Hagrid said, looking over his shoulder for a minute. Hermione beamed and carefully lifted the little baby up into her arms, cooing frantically at the "darling angel baby girl," as Hermione had said. She walked back over by where Harry was straightening his sleeping bag, stepped on it, and sat down in one of the chairs.   
  
"Hermione!" Harry said, glaring at her.   
  
"Come here, Harry. Come look at the baby," Hermione said, completely oblivious to the fact that she'd ruined his work.   
  
Harry sighed and sat down next to her. Emma opened her mouth to yawn. Harry had to admit that she was very cute. Harry gently stroked the baby's cheek. Emma began squealing and kicking.  
  
"Hey now, cutie, don't get violent or else you'll be put to bed," Harry warned, chuckling.   
  
"Poor tyke's probably jus' hungry. Come here, Emma, Hagrid's got yer bottle all ready fer yeh," Hagrid said, coming over with a bottle. Hagrid sat down next to Hermione and Harry and gently took Emma from Hermione. She squealed, upset about being moved so much. "I know, I know, Emmakins, here yeh are. Come on, now, don' fight the one who's feedin' yeh," he said, and gently nudged the bottle into her tiny mouth. Emma began to eat slowly and Hagrid beamed.  
  
"Look at the li'l angel. She knows not teh rush or else she's goin' ter get a tummy ache. Such a smart li'l girl yeh are, Emma Lee," Hagrid cooed, looking incredibly proud.  
  
"Aww, Hagrid! You're going to be a very good daddy and or mummy!" Harry said, trying to sound like Hermione. This worked and Hermione hit him while Hagrid laughed.   
  
"Shut up, Harry," he laughed.  
  
"Well you did say that you were Norbert's mummy, what? Isn't Emma good enough for you to be her mummy?" Harry teased. Emma began squirming and began to whine and Hagrid instantly pulled the bottle out of her mouth.  
  
"Aww, whassamatter, Emma? Aren't yeh feelin' well, Baby? Hermione, wha's wrong, why's she cryin'?" Hagrid asked, beginning to worry as Emma began to sob softly.   
  
"Dunno, Hagrid. Check her diaper," Hermione suggested. Hagrid gently leaned the crying infant against his chest and held her bottom with one hand while he pulled back on her diaper and peered inside.   
  
"Nope, not even a bit wet. Oh, come on, Emma, stop cryin', please? Harry, do yeh think yeh could send an owl to Molly? I'm still not too good with this baby stuff yet," Hagrid said, gently bouncing her.   
  
"Sure, Hagrid. C'mere, Hedwig," Harry said, and his snow-white owl flew to his arm.   
  
"The writin' stuff is in tha' first drawer, Harry," Hagrid said as he and Hermione tried to quiet the small girl.   
  
"Try patting her on the back. Very, very gently, Hagrid," Hermione said, looking concerned about Emma. Hagrid did this and also rubbed Emma's back.   
  
This didn't help. From what Harry heard, Emma now had the hiccups. "Poor tyke. Hiccups and cryin'! Poor li'l thing," Hagrid cooed, gently bouncing her. Meanwhile, Harry quickly scribbled;  
  
Dear Mrs. Weasley,  
  
Hi, this is Harry. Hagrid's having a really rough time with Emma. She's started crying for no reason and now she's got the hiccups as well. Please come as soon as you can. Sorry for waking you up so late. Apologize to Mr. Weasley for me as well.  
  
Please come quickly,  
  
Harry  
  
Harry quickly attached the letter to Hedwig's leg. "Take this to the Burrow as fast as you can, all right, Hedwig? Yeah, I know you don't like seeing Emma cry. Sooner you get this to Mrs. Weasley, the sooner Emma'll stop crying," Harry said to Hedwig before she flew out the window. Emma wasn't planning on stopping her crying any time soon.   
  
"Here, 'Mione, hold Emma. I'm goin' ter sand down the corners on her - er - drawer," Hagrid said, handing Hermione Emma. She gently patted her bottom and cooed at her as Hagrid worked on Emma's crib.   
  
"It's all right, angel, you're okay. Let me see your forehead for a moment, angel," Hermione cooed, and gently put her hand on the infant's forehead. "Oh, angel, you've got a bit of a temperature, kitten. It's probably just from your crying, huh, babes?"   
  
About twenty minutes later, Mrs. Weasley, Mr. Weasley, Ron, and surprisingly Lupin and McGonagall and Dumbledore were knocking on Hagrid's door. Harry answered it and let them in. Hagrid was finishing putting blankets and cushiony things in the drawer. Emma was still crying and Hermione looked very stressed as she gently bounced the infant.   
  
"Please, Emma, stop crying. Please, angel, Aunty 'Mione is getting quite tired," Hermione said, looking to be near tears herself. Mrs. Weasley hurried over and gently took the baby from Hermione. Ron went over and hugged Hermione.   
  
"I know, 'Mione, I know. You tried. It's all right, precious," Ron cooed, gently rubbing her back. Mrs. Weasley was trying to calm the infant down.   
  
"It's no use, Molly, she won't quiet. Poor li'l tyke's been cryin' fer 'bout a half hour now," Hagrid said, sighing.   
  
"Oh, poor angel. Arthur, open my purse, I brought a baby thermometer," Mrs. Weasley said, making Harry cringe of the thought of poor Emma. Mrs. Weasley noticed this and smiled. "Under the arm, Harry, dear, I think that way's just too mean." Harry sighed relieved and Ron laughed at him. Mrs. Weasley undressed Emma from her pajamas a bit so her torso was exposed.   
  
"Oh, someone's just kind of chilly, huh, Emma? Poor little thing looks pale," Mr. Weasley said, gently stroking her head after he had handed the thermometer to his wife. "I'll take her for you, Molly." Mrs. Weasley surrendered the baby and gently lifted the baby's tiny arm. Emma tried to pull away but couldn't, making her even more upset.  
  
"Oh, I know, angel, I know. It doesn't hurt. See? There you go. Just try and hold your arm to your side, okay love? Okay? Okay. When did she start crying, Hagrid? Just after what?" Mrs. Weasley cooed at Emma, holding her arm to her side.   
  
"Jus' as I was feedin' her. I tried the temperature meself, it wasn't too hot and not too cold. I did exactly as you and Maggie said," Hagrid said, looking very worried. After a minute or two of coddling towards Emma, Mrs. Weasley took out the thermometer. She tisked.  
  
"Oh angel's near seven degrees below ninty-eight point six. I think we should take the poor angel to St. Mungo's. But maybe a quick warm bath would help her. If not, it would at least calm her down. And that would give me the chance to write to Maggie and tell her," she said, waving her wand so a small wash basin appeared on the table. She flicked her wand again and it began filling up with warm water. "Where's Emma's bath-time things?"   
  
"Righ' here," Hagrid said, taking out the diaper bag and pulling out some baby soap and a soft washcloth. He opened his cupboard and pulled out a rubber duck, a toy sailboat, and a few plastic frogs and snakes. He began to undress Emma carefully, cooing at her all the while. He threw out the used diaper and gently held the naked baby in his arms, trying his best to keep her warm while Mrs. Weasley checked the water.   
  
"Just a bit warmer so she'll warm right up," Mrs. Weasley said, flicking her wand again. A small fire appeared beneath the basin. A few minutes later, Mrs. Weasley flicked her wand again and the flame went out. She dipped her hand into the water and smiled. "Perfect for da tiny baby giwl." Hagrid went over and very gently placed the little girl in the tub. She looked shocked and her eyes went wide. She stopped crying and looked more curious than anything. Hagrid took out the baby propper upper thingy and slid it behind Emma. She reached over and tried to grab a frog that was floating nearby. Hagrid smiled and handed it to her. She instantly popped it into her mouth and Harry was glad that Hagrid had thought of getting big play toys. Even the snakes were too big to go into tiny Emma's mouth.   
  
"Are yeh feelin' better, angel? Oh, I think yeh are. Yer lookin' happier. Yeh've gotten right back ter yer suckin' habit," Hagrid said, smiling at Emma. She looked up at him. "Look at those big green eyes. Yer such a pretty naked li'l baby," he said.   
  
Ron walked over and leaned on the table, making Emma look over at him. He said slyly, "So, gorgeous, come here often?"   
  
"Eeeeg!" Emma said happily, showing Ron her duck.   
  
"Yes, that's a very lovely duck, Emma, but I want you, not your duck," Ron said.   
  
"Urrrrg!" squealed Emma.   
  
"Hyper little thing. You're so good with words, Emma," Ron said, winking at the baby. Emma sucked on her duck and watched Ron for a while until she got bored and reached for a snake, dropping her frog as well. "So that's it, huh? That's it for me and Mr. Frog? Well we have feelings too, Emma!" Ron said, pretending to be really hurt by this. She looked over again, the snake in her mouth and wide-eyed. "Caught you red-handed with another snake, eh? I guess it's really over then, Emma. You silly girl, what are you doing?" Emma was turning her head to the side very much and looking at them from the side.   
  
Hagrid adjusted the cushion that Emma was leaning up against so she was up to her shoulders in the clear warm water. She yawned, and struggled to keep her eyes open.   
  
"The sweet little dear. She looks quite warmed up. I think you can take her out now, Hagrid," Mrs. Weasley said fondly.   
  
Hagrid carefully lifted the tired baby up out of the water and wrapped her in a towel. She yawned and snuggled up against him. He smiled. "Cute li'l thing. Why anyone would want ter give yeh up is beyond me. Too cute fer words, you are. An' now yer sick an' everything."   
  
He carefully set her on the table and began to dry her off. Once he did, Hagrid wrapped the blanket around her and held her to keep Emma warm while he looked for pajamas. He pulled out a pair of minute yellow pajamas with feet in them. They had stitching on them that looking like two ducks on the chest. Little red ribbons had been placed at their necks.   
  
"Oh, look at these, Emma. Footie-pajamas an' everything. Yeh don' even need socks. That'll be easier fer both o' us," Hagrid said. He gently set her down with one hand while he held onto the small pajamas. He sized them up to Emma.   
  
"Well, they're still going to be rather big, but bigger is more comfortable, right, Emma?" Hermione said, smiling at the small infant. Emma "gooed" in response.   
  
Hagrid began fixing her diaper, and Mrs. Weasley gently slid the thermometer under her arm. After about a minute, she looked at it and frowned. "It only brought her temperature up a degree. I think we'd better bring her to St. Mungo's just to be sure it's nothing serious," she said, and put the thermometer back into her purse.   
  
Hagrid looked panicked. "Oh, I'm the worst parent in the hist'ry o' parents," he moaned.   
  
"No, you're not, Hagrid. Unexpected things like these just sometimes happen. Get her bundled all up, Hagrid, I'll write Maggie while you do that," Mrs. Weasley said, gently patting his arm.  
  
"I'll probably mess tha' up, too," Hagrid said sadly as he began to dress Emma in warm clothes and finally wrapped her in his moleskin coat.   
  
"We'll have to Floo to the hospital. I don't want to go on that horrid Knight Bus. Poor baby got a bump on her head. Hagrid, Remus, Harry, and I will go. Arthur, Ron, Hermione, stay here in case we send an owl. If she has to spend the night or anything awful like that," Mrs. Weasley said decidedly.   
  
"Right. Good luck," Hermione said, looking nervous.   
  
Soon, the five were up at the castle and Flooed to St. Mungo's. As Harry stepped out of the fireplace, he heard Emma crying. Hagrid was frantically trying to calm her.   
  
"Ssh, sweetie. It's only a little bit o' fire. It couldn' o' hurt. Aw, yer jus' a dizzy li'l thing, huh? There there, honey. Dad's right here," Hagrid said. He paused as the baby stopped crying and snuggled against his chest. He smiled. "I like the sound o' that. Dad. Suits me, I think."   
  
Harry smiled. "I like that on you too, Hagrid," he said. He suddenly thought of something and smirked at Hagrid. "So Madam Maxime is going to be her mum, then?"   
  
Hagrid instantly turned red. "Wha' - Wha' do yeh mean, Harry? Why'd she be Emma's mum if I was her dad?"   
  
"Don't play dumb, Hagrid, everyone and their uncle knows that you fancy her and she fancies you. So, is she going to be the mum?" Ron said, sighing. Hagrid chuckled.  
  
"Thought it wasn't all that obvious, but no. I think I'm jus' goin' ter be her dad and Madam Maxime can - don' tell her I said this - bu' she can go adopt her own li'l angel if she wants one. She already said tha' she's not goin' ter have babies, any. So I think Emma'll jus' be a li'l surprise."   
  
They walked up to the Welcome Witch, who looked fairly old and motherly. "Uh oh, sick baby? All right, sir, go up to room two hundred and fifty-six and I'll send down a Healer. You have to fill out all of her information as well, but you can do that in the room," said the witch, handing Hagrid a clipboard. He looked worriedly down at it.  
  
"Er - ma'am, I can' do this paperwork. Yeh see, she's jus' supposed teh stay with me fer tehnight b'fore I adopt her. Bu' the woman who took care o' her b'fore me is comin'," Hagrid said worriedly.   
  
"All right, what's her name?" the witch said kindly, taking out a notepad.   
  
"Maggie Hilts," Hagrid replied.   
  
"Maggie … Hilts … room … two fifty-six. All right then, just go up to the room and I'll send her there when she get here, all right? Poor little darling," the witch said, looking at the very over-wrapped baby in Hagrid's arms. "Oh, it'd be a help if when you get up there, you could strip the poor little thing down to her diaper. You can wrap her in one of the blankets you've got there."   
  
Soon they were in the room that the witch had said to go to. Hagrid was undressing Emma on the metal examining table that was in the room.   
  
Emma was beginning to whine at the cold of the examining board. "I know, sweetheart, it's kind o' chilly, isn't it? Up we go, angel, back into ol' Hagrid's arms," Hagrid cooed, gently holding Emma close to his chest. He held her bottom in one hand while he rubbed her back with the other.   
  
"I hope she's not very sick. Poor little darling. If she were to get sick and since she's only that big, then it's going to take the poor little sweetie to get better," Mrs. Weasley said, gently stroking the infant's cheek.   
  
There was a gentle knock on the door and a man who looked to be in his mid-thirties entered with a clipboard. He had sandy-brown hair and a kind expression. "Hello all, and of course Miss Small. The crazy man who just entered would be Dr. Brownhill," he said, chuckling.  
  
"Doctor? I'm not so sure she should see a doctor," Mrs. Weasley said as if it were something incompetent people did.   
  
"Sorry, ma'am, but I would be the only one here that takes care of - er - basically everything. And I have been given some Healer training, if that helps. I specialize in obstetrics, gynecology, and neonatology. Come here, little angel," Dr. Brownhill said. He walked over and carefully took Emma from Hagrid. "Now, what's her name?" he asked.   
  
"Emma," supplied Hagrid, who looked rather worried.   
  
"Emma….?"   
  
"Mead," he replied.   
  
"Ah ha! Saw you just a couple days ago, didn't I, Emma? Such a smooth delivery and everything. Now, you're feeling a bit ill, pumpkin?" Dr. Brownhill said cheerily as he gently set Emma down on the examining table. He unwrapped her from the blanket, but left it on the board so she wouldn't get cold. She kicked her foot and wiggled as Dr. Brownhill picked her up.  
  
"Her temperature was down about six degrees when we checked it a few minutes ago," Mrs. Weasley said, looking very worried.   
  
"Easy, ma'am, it's probably just a little chill. Did she have anything cold by her?" Dr. Brownhill said, smiling reassuringly.   
  
"Nope. She was drinkin' her bottle an' by the fire ter boot. Then she jus' stopped drinkin' and started cryin'," Hagrid sniffed. Emma gave Dr. Brownhill a very funny look.  
  
"Well I know I'm not as pretty as you are to look at, Emma, but it's not very nice to make faces," he said, propping her against his chest. She reared her head back for a moment, and then sneezed, burying her face in Dr. Brownhill's shoulder. "Bwess you, Emma. And again. And once more. Hey, cut that sneezing' stuff out, Emma! Okay, now we're coughing. Was she like this much before?" 


	4. Broomsticks and Flying

Owie, Emma, you're pulling. Ouch! Emmy, babes, please let go. You're hurting me. You're going to rip it right out! See that? That's called a   
  
doctor. Go rip something out of him, he can sew it back on," Iris said, trying to get Emma to let go of her earring. Dr. Brownhill rolled his eyes.   
  
"Yeah, but she knows that it's better to rip something out of her sister rather than someone else," Dr. Brownhill pointed out. Hagrid sighed   
  
and very gently took Emma from Iris.  
  
"Bad girl, Emma. You don't try the rip yer sister's ear off. Okay, go fer me beard. Tha's okay. I could always grow a new one. But yer sis   
  
can' grow a new ear. Well, maybe with potions and spells but tha' wouldn' be too nice fer her, don' yeh think?" Hagrid said as Emma began to pull on   
  
his beard. Iris looked a bit softer towards Hagrid from then on.   
  
Dr. Brownhill left the room to go get the medication.   
  
"Thank heaven it's only that and nothing gravely serious," Maggie said, looking relieved.   
  
"Well, it is still rather serious. Bronchitis on a three-day-old can't be very good," Iris pointed out.   
  
"Well, it's not gravely serious!" she said quickly.   
  
"Good point, Maggie. Poor thing. She looks so sleepy. There, there, Emma, sweetheart. Yer jus' a li'l sleepy, huh?" Hagrid said gently.   
  
"Hagrid, is she going to stay with you until tomorrow?" Iris asked curiously.   
  
Hagrid looked up. It was the first time she had addressed him without sounding furious. "Yeah, I think so. Jus' need ter give her the   
  
medicine an' then set her ter sleep. A couple hours later, I'll be back up, feedin' baby an' burpin' her, an' puttin' her right back ter sleep. I think she   
  
could do with a li'l coddlin' after havin' ter go ter the hospital in the middle o' the night," he said, smiling down at the baby, who blinked furiously to   
  
keep awake.   
  
"I reckon you're getting the hang of this," Iris said quietly.   
  
"Nope. Jus' pretendin'," Hagrid replied. Emma yawned widely, and Hagrid bent over to give her a whiskery kiss on the cheek. Emma   
  
squealed, making Hagrid chuckle. "Madam Maxime did the same thing."   
  
"About what time would you be around, then?" Iris inquired. Hagrid shrugged, slightly shocked that she was being more kinder to him.  
  
"Oh, I dunno. 'Bout ten or eleven, I reckon. Why?" Hagrid said as Emma began digging around in the pocket closest to her sleepily.  
  
"No reason. Hey, don't eat anything before you lot come over. Maggie likes to cook for random reasons. 'Maggie, I have a cold.' 'Have   
  
pancakes.' 'Maggie, I have a hangnail.' 'Have cake.' "Maggie, my dad died.' 'Have toast.' Ever realized that, Maggie?" Iris said, looking over at a   
  
blushing Maggie.  
  
"I'm not all that bad," she said shyly.  
  
"All right, Let's all just take a moment to try to pretend that you're not a food nutter, no pun intended," Iris said, and after a few seconds   
  
said, "Phew! Glad that's over!" Maggie gave her a playful glare and sighed.   
  
Emma began to whine in Hagrid's arms and he gently patted her bottom to try to soothe her. "Well, sounds like someone else besides me   
  
is getting' sleepy, huh, Emma? See you lot tomorrow, then. C'mon, Harry, 'Mione," he said as he finished clothing the infant. Iris went over and gave   
  
Emma a kiss on the forehead and she stopped whining and looked up.  
  
"Sweet dreams, sweetie," Iris said, smiling at the infant. "Night everyone, see most of you tomorrow morning," Iris said before Maggie put   
  
a hand lightly on her shoulder and they Apparated back to the orphanage.   
  
The next morning, Harry woke at about eleven. He stretched and then realized that Hagrid was already up and Hermione was cooking   
  
breakfast. She had obviously not wanted to try and eat the stuff that Hagrid cooks.   
  
"Well, good-morning, Mr. I'm-Not-Going-To-Get-Up-For-Anything-In-The-World-Until-Maybe-Eleven-O' Clock-Or-Until-Death-Eaters-  
  
Attack-And-Take-My-Pillow," Hermione said, smiling as she threw her pillow at him. He chuckled and got up and found his glasses. He smiled as he   
  
heard Hagrid cooing at Emma behind him.   
  
"Who's just a hungry li'l girl, Emma? I think you are! Yup, I'm pretty sure yeh are!" he cooed as he fed the infant. She hummed in   
  
response, and kicked her feet. "Now yeh have ter be tryin' the be cute when yer this cute. Are yeh tryin' hard, Emma? 'Cause either way, yeh look   
  
really cute when yer tryin' and even when yer not. Jus' a darlin' yeh are, Emma."   
  
"Oh, Harry, the Weasleys were invited to join us at the brunch thing at the orphanage. Along with Professor Dumbledore, Professor   
  
McGonagall, Lupin, even Percy, though how they found out 'bout Weatherby is beyond me," Hagrid said, very gently patting Emma on the back with   
  
a cloth over his shoulder in case she spit up or threw up while he was burping her. "I s'pose that the dinner thing's goin' the take place at this   
  
brunch thing or whatnot, 'cause her father's comin' along, too. Hiccups again, Emma?" (A/N: I'm really sry about all the cooing about the baby and   
  
whatnot, but I LUV BABIES! So, yeah, I'm sry! I'll cut it out if u want me 2, but u have 2 review!)   
  
"It's at eleven thirty, Harry, so you had better get dressed and everything else. And would you at least try to keep your hair down please?   
  
This is a very important day for Hagrid and Emma and Iris. Here, use this," Hermione said, handing him a bottle of hair gel.   
  
"I'll probably use up the entire bottle, you know," Harry pointed out. Hermione shrugged.   
  
"It refills itself for children as it had been before. You had better hurry up, Harry, it's nearly five after eleven," Hermione replied, cleaning up  
  
the hut a bit more. Hermione began putting their sleeping bags in a corner of the hut.  
  
In a few minutes' time, they had Flooed to the orphanage and they were all surprised to see the house nearly devoid of children. They were   
  
in the sitting room of the orphanage, but it wasn't crawling with children as normally.  
  
Only Iris sat on the couch, reading an extremely large, old, tattered-looking book. Before anyone could announce their presence, Iris   
  
smiled.  
  
"Hello, Harry, Hagrid, Hermione. My, there are a lot of 'H' names in your group, now aren't there? Professors Dumbledore, McGonagall, and   
  
Lupin are already here and are in the kitchen. The lot of the Weasleys are a bit late, but with as many of people in their family that they have to   
  
get all ready, I wouldn't be surprised if they were three weeks late. Anywhos, breakfast is cooking as I babble about - erm, something. Anyways,   
  
I shall pry my fat ass off the couch and shall show you the kitchen, okay?" Iris said, setting the book down and putting it on the coffee table. Harry   
  
went over and tried picking the book up, but this task proved too much for Harry.  
  
"Bloody hell, you read as much, if not more than Hermione does!" Harry said, looking at Iris amazedly. She blushed deeply and Hermione   
  
elbowed him in the ribs.   
  
"Shut up, Harry! That's not polite!" Hermione hissed. She smiled at Iris. "So, would you mind showing me your room? That's the only thing   
  
that I've really been interested in at this house. I mean, not to be rude or anything."  
  
"Not at all, Hermione. But I'll show you my mess in a bit. But this way would be the kitchen, where I shall keep you hostage until you all are   
  
begging for me mercy from the food I will be stuffing down your throats," Iris said, chuckling. They went through a small hallway and entered a   
  
fair-sized kitchen. There sat Dumbledore, McGonagall, and Lupin, drinking tea and coffee and chuckling at a joke Lupin had just told.  
  
"Ah, hello, Harry, Hermione, Emma, Hagrid, and Iris. What a lovely morning for a brunch, isn't it?" Dumbledore said pleasantly. He beamed   
  
when he saw little Emma, yawning. "Of course, for some darling sleepyheads, sleep would be more pleasing, right, Miss Hagrid?"   
  
Emma hummed at this and looked at him sleepily. She gave a small burp and McGonagall chuckled. "You still seem to be sleeping, Emma,   
  
dear," she said, grinning at the infant. "Hagrid, may I hold her, please?"   
  
"Oh, o' course, Professor," Hagrid said, going over and gently placing Emma in her arms. Emma looked up at her new holder sleepily.   
  
"Uh," Emma said before snuggling into McGonagall's robes. McGonagall beamed at the little girl and gently stroked her hair.  
  
"You have quite a lot of hair for someone your age, my dear. I remember it taking Harry a while before he had hair at all. Oh! Emma, dear,   
  
where are you trying to go?" McGonagall said as Emma began squirming about in her arms. Emma finally settled down and closed her eyes gently.  
  
"I'm finding it quite hard to not favor students, Albus," McGonagall said, gently stroking the baby's hair.  
  
"Well, technically, she's not a student quite yet, Minerva, so we're allowed to - How to put this appropriately? We are allowed to spoil her   
  
until she squeals," Dumbledore said, getting chuckles from about the room. Emma squealed angrily at being disturbed once more.   
  
Iris smiled and sighed. "Why don't I just go put this little monster down for a quick little nap, all right? We don't want someone getting all   
  
cranky in a Professor's arms," she said, gently picking up Emma from McGonagall's arms.   
  
That was the last straw for Emma, though. She began to whimper and then began to quietly sob and there were coos from about the room.   
  
"Easy, Emma, we're just going to go up to Iris' room and get you a crib set up so you don't disturb all of the other little ones," Iris said, gently giving   
  
the baby a reassuring squeeze. Emma clung to the front of Iris's robes, and leaned her head against her chest, sobbing. "I know, sweetheart, I know.   
  
Life stinks, doesn't it, hon?" Iris gently kissed the little one's head. Emma squealed as Iris began to take her out of the room.  
  
"What is the matter with you, Emma? Do you or do you not want to take a nap and be all friendly when you see Daddy?" Iris said, going   
  
over and setting Emma down on the counter. She held her back and her front while Emma began to calm down. "Are you as weird as your dad? I   
  
think you are. Anyways, I think you're happy now, aren't you? Wanna go back to Hagrid? All right, come here, Tickle Toes." Iris lifted the baby high   
  
into the air and then brought her back down into her arms and kissing her on the forehead. She went over and gently handed Hagrid Emma. Hagrid   
  
nuzzled the baby's hair.   
  
"Yeh've got too much hair fer such a young baby," he said, and kissed her on the cheek. Emma hummed and popped her fingers into her   
  
mouth. "Mmm. Fingers. Mus' taste pretty good from tha' happy li'l face o' yours," Hagrid said, chuckling.   
  
In a somewhat slow succession, familiar voices were heard from the sitting room. "Wonder where everyone is?"   
  
"Were in here, Mrs. Weasley!" called Iris, hurrying our of the kitchen. "Here, let me take your cloaks, everyone else would be in the kitchen,   
  
just go straight through the hallways, however tiny it may be. You can't miss it, as that's the only room it leads to," Iris's voice came through the   
  
hallways. They all chuckled quietly as the Weasley family (minus Percy) entered the room. Dumbledore, McGonagall, and Lupin began conjuring chairs   
  
for the others. Iris ran into the room some minutes later and began to get tea, coffee, and apple juice from the refrigerator. She set them on the   
  
kitchen table and began to bring out many cups.   
  
"Chose your weapon, or type of drink. I can heat up the tea if anyone would like," Iris said quickly, hurrying about the room. Mrs. Weasley   
  
smiled and puffed out her chest proudly.  
  
"She's going to make a wonderful mum one day," she whispered to Mr. Weasley.   
  
"Go on, go on, have a seat! Don't want to tire your legs, it takes hours for them to heal, trust me. All right, I'm going to go fetch Maggie   
  
and then I intend to make sure that all of the other little ones upstairs have been fed and changed and I'll watch them for a few minutes, okay?" Iris   
  
said very quickly. She hurried out of the room, panting already. The Weasleys took their seats and smiled and poured their choosing of morning drink.   
  
"Very nice, she is," Fred said, smirking.  
  
"And not just the attitude," George added.  
  
"Very shapely," added Charlie, nodding.  
  
"Or busty," Fred and George said together.  
  
"Shut up! She is being a very kind hostess, getting everything all set up so quickly and whatnot," Mrs. Weasley said, glaring at her sons.   
  
Maggie came down the stairs and smiled at them all.   
  
"Good morning, you lot. All of you lot. Iris said that breakfast slash brunch should be ready fairly shortly. Her father is to be coming even   
  
shorter than that," Maggie said pleasantly.   
  
A while later, Iris came back down, wearing a tight black T-shirt and a pair of tight jeans that Harry liked very much on her. Her hair was   
  
wet, making it look silvery and Harry was surprised that her hair was now down to her waist. The other days that he had seen her, it had just been   
  
down to her shoulders.   
  
Noticing his confused look, Iris said, "I'm Metamorphamagus. But I'm really not that good with it just yet. I can only change my hair length   
  
and can only change it to silver."  
  
"Really? I'm a full-fledged one." Tonks said, beaming.   
  
"Me too, but I haven't been able to change in so long that I have forgotten how to change much about me," Iris said, smiling pleasantly.   
  
She and Tonks talked about this for a while until a sharp rap on the door was heard.   
  
"Come in," Iris called, smiling. No one entered. "Come in!" Iris said a bit louder. Still, no one entered, but just rapped harder. "Listen, I told   
  
you to -"  
  
WHAM! The door flung open and all that carried wands there whipped them out. A very abhorring look appeared on all of the Weasley's   
  
faces as they all put their wands in their pockets.   
  
"Why didn't you open the door for the Secondary Minister of Magic?!" yelled Percy in Iris' face. She glared at him and -   
  
WHAM! It was louder than the door being forced open. All of the Weasley's mouths were open and Fred and George began to clap. Iris had   
  
punched Percy square in the jaw.  
  
"LISTEN UP, BUDDY! This house does not belong to you, does it? And besides, it wouldn't hurt you to open the door!" Iris yelled at him.   
  
Percy was now pale as a tall man with brilliantly bright red hair stepped into the room, looking concerned. Harry noticed that his ears were exactly   
  
like Iris's, except for the small bit missing.   
  
"Iris, please stop yelling. Percy, if you yell at my daughter once more, I shall whack you in the head so hard you will feel it ten years from   
  
now," said the man quietly. Percy, his eyes wide, nodded.   
  
"Y-Yes, sir, Secondary Minister!" Percy squeaked. The man sighed.  
  
"Say it with me, Percy. Brian Mead. Not 'Secondary Minister'. That makes me sound like a cold-hearted bastard. Unless you think I am, in   
  
which case I feel that you should continue to call me that until I die," Mr. Mead said, looking at Percy with raised eyebrows.   
  
Iris grinned, biting her lower lip. She looked extremely excited to see her father. Mr. Mead grinned at his daughter, and Harry could clearly   
  
see the strong similarities between them.   
  
"Hullo, pet," he said, and scooped his daughter into a hug. He swung her around a bit, and set her down lightly. He kissed her on the cheek.   
  
"How have you been?" he asked, grinning.   
  
"Never better, Dad. Never better," Iris assured her father. "And you?"   
  
"Ah, well, your mum's been a bit grumpy since your sister was born. So, after catering to her every whim, I am now tending to a broken   
  
spirit. She's starting to think she's old," Mr. Mead explained.   
  
Iris's lips tightened and disappeared as she heard about her mother. Her ears flattened to her head like a cat's.   
  
Mr. Mead sighed. "Your mum isn't the most perfect person there is, Kitten, but she just does not want children of her own. Of course I do,   
  
but then again, I love your mother very much. So, if you'd like to send a hate message to her, I could be the delivery boy. I'd just prefer not to   
  
actually have to witness it," he said.   
  
Iris laughed at this.   
  
Mr. Mead looked around the room. "And where is - ah ha! The little angel," he said, quickly walking over to Hagrid, robes billowing. He had   
  
to stand on the tips of his toes to see. Hagrid blushed and quickly bent slightly.   
  
"Ah, thank you, good man. I'm not much for standing on my tip-toes," Mr. Mead said, grinning at his baby. He looked up at Hagrid. "Mind if   
  
I hold her?"   
  
"Not at all, not at all," Hagrid said quickly, and he quickly surrendered the baby. "Rubeus Hagrid, by the way."   
  
"Yes, I know," Mr. Mead said, not looking up from his baby daughter. "Hagrid for short. Also the kind man to take my pet away from the   
  
orphanage," he said, smiling at the infant. He leaned her against his chest and held her bottom. Emma squealed happily. "Yeah, Dad's here. Get   
  
ready to start crying."   
  
"Paff!" the baby declared.   
  
"Really? I'd never known. So, tell me, m'dear, what is the meaning of life? Babies are supposed to know until they can talk," Mr. Mead   
  
asked. He paused, pretending to wait for an answer.   
  
Surprisingly, Emma did answer. "Eeerrgh!"  
  
"Oh really? I always thought it was cheese. Well, you're the smarter one of us, so I'll take your word for it, Emma," Mr. Mead said, nuzzling   
  
the infant's cheek. She squealed and grabbed his ear. "Ow. Okay, Emma, my dear sweetie, please give Daddy his ear back. Please? Iris! Make her   
  
stop!"   
  
Iris chuckled. "Why? She loves it," she smirked as her father finally freed his ear from Emma's grip.   
  
"You're not all that nice, are you, Iry?" he said, straightening up. Lupin looked at Mr. Mead quizzically for a second.   
  
"Hang on. What did you say your name was?" he asked, his brow furrowed. Mr. Mead looked over and smirked.  
  
"Brian Mead, Remus," he said, and Lupin's eyes widened. "Been years, hasn't it, Moony?" Lupin could do nothing but nod his head with his   
  
mouth slightly open.   
  
"Wait. You two know each other? And you know his nick-name?" Harry asked, now quite confused. Mr. Mead looked over at him and   
  
smiled.   
  
"Yes, we do, Harry. As I also know Sirius and you and James. Of course, it's been at least a decade and a half since I've seen you or any   
  
of the other Marauders," he said, smiling.   
  
"All right, I'm confused!" declared Iris, looking around the room. Harry nodded in agreement.   
  
"Well, I went to school with the Marauders, a group of weird, crazy, havoc-reeking young wizards. And at one point they had run out of   
  
ideas and were simply sitting around, waiting for ideas to come to them. Then I showed up and taught them a thing or twenty," Mr. Mead said,   
  
smiling.  
  
"No, you did not show us a thing at all! It was a trick played on you, remember? From that we began getting more crafty and we opened   
  
our minds to more things," Lupin corrected.   
  
"Ah ha ha ha. You only think I was the victim. But who, prey tell were the ones who got the green paint all over themselves?" Mr. Mead   
  
said, smirking at Lupin.   
  
"Very clever, Bri, very clever indeed. But who, prey tell, was the one who got beat to a bloody pulp for that?" Lupin said, smiling. Mr. Mead   
  
laughed and then sighed.  
  
"I still have marks from when Sirius bit me when I told you lot that it wouldn't come off for three months and that it was designed to soak   
  
all the way through your clothes and onto all of your skin. The look on James' face was quite priceless," Mr. Mead said, chuckling. "Unfortunately,   
  
they've stopped making that kind of paint now-a-days."   
  
Fred and George smiled at each other. "Sounds like a very good business opportunity, Fred," George said, smiling evilly.  
  
"Indeed it does. As long as it's slightly different than the kind that was originally made," his twin responded.  
  
"Otherwise we'd get in trouble with some kind of Department in the Ministry or something, I'm sure," Fred said, thinking about how to   
  
change it.   
  
"Add an extra ingredient but make sure that it won't change the effect of it," Mr. Mead said quietly when Mrs. Weasley's back was turned,   
  
as she looked like she was going to start up about the twins but didn't want to ruin a perfectly fine meal. "I'll give you the old ingredients, take out   
  
the eye of newt and replace it with toe of frog(A/N: hee hee! It's the song in the 3rd movie! I'm so weird). It won't make a difference, but you can   
  
change the colors of it with simple food dye," he whispered. Fred and George smirked at one another.   
  
"Iris, I have an announcement to declare. Your dad is the coolest old guy alive!" George announced. Iris and her father laughed.  
  
"He's not cool! He's a five-year-old in big-boy pants!" Iris laughed. She got a playful shove from her father.  
  
"No, you're the five-year-old in big boy pants," he said, and got a punch on the shoulder.  
  
"You're an evil, evil little man, insulting your own daughter like that. You are awesome," Fred declared as Iris began passing out food and   
  
plates.  
  
"You want this, Fred? George? Take all of that stuff back and you can eat," Iris said, holding the plates just out of their reach.   
  
"No!" they both said at the same time.  
  
"Fine. No pancakes, eggs, bacon, sausage, toast, and hash browns for you two," Iris said, putting their plates on the counter. They looked   
  
at each other and begged for their plates.  
  
"I take it back, I take it back!" they both cried as Iris smirked.   
  
"I thought as much," she said, handing them their plates. They hungrily ate and Iris just watched them in disgust for a moment.  
  
"Ugh, that's really disgusting. How one can even eat meat products is a real wonder, but to eat like you're not going to see any food for   
  
the rest of your life," she said, looking at them with her brow furrowed.   
  
"Yeah, that's how most of the Weasley men eat. Don't worry, you'll get used to it," Ginny said, chuckling at the look on her face.  
  
"Are you sure? I mean, I'm not sure if it's all that healthy to eat without chewing anything," Iris said, moving back a bit from the twins.   
  
"If you're in Gryffindor then you'll learn that Ron eats about the same way, but at least with him you don't have to have a shield," Hermione   
  
said, chuckling as Ron's ears turned red.   
  
The meal continued, and after, they all sat in the lounge, talking, laughing, and digesting. Suddenly, Mr. Mead shook his head and began   
  
taking out a small splinter from his pocket.   
  
"I can't believe I nearly forgot. Albus, Gryffindor doesn't have many Quidditch players this year, does it?" he said suddenly. Dumbledore   
  
shook his head.  
  
"Let's see, only Ron, Harry, and Ginny. I fear that one of you three will have to be the captain and have two more Chasers and Beaters   
  
before the first match," Dumbledore said, looking at the three.   
  
"Harry's Captain!" chorused both Weasleys.   
  
"Hey, come on now, I don't know anything about good Quidditch moves or anything! I know how to Wrongski Fient and that's it!" Harry   
  
objected. "Besides, how do I know a person is good at Quidditch?"   
  
"Try-outs," Iris said, looking to be deep in a book.   
  
"Hey, you can be Captain!" Ginny said happily.   
  
"Nope. She's not going to Hogwarts," Harry corrected.  
  
"Wrong," Iris said, not looking up from her book.  
  
"Wrong?" Harry questioned.  
  
"Right." This confused Harry very much. "Last night I did a great deal of thinking and pondering about Emma and if she gets sick or hurt   
  
again, I'm not going to be there. So if I go to Hogwarts, then I can be there for her in case she bumps her head or gets a cut," Iris explained,   
  
putting her book down. Harry nodded in comprehension. "I owled Professor Dumbledore late in the night, followed by a letter to my father."   
  
"Then you can be Captain!" said Ginny happily.   
  
"Sorry, I don't even know how to mount," Iris said, shrugging.   
  
"WHAT?!" came several surprised voices. Harry, Ron, Fred, George, Bill, and Charlie had all been quite surprised at this.   
  
"Well, you have to learn right now!" implored Ginny. Iris shrugged once more.   
  
"I don't have a broom," she pointed out.  
  
"And that's what birthdays and fathers are for," Mr. Mead said, taking out his wand and tapping it to each splinter. They enlarged and   
  
everyone's jaw dropped.   
  
A broomstick with a silver handle and very fine work done on perfecting each strand of the broom's end. "Happy birthday, Pumpkin."   
  
"That's a Firebolt 2000! They haven't even been released to the public yet!" exclaimed George, looking the broom over. "How did you get   
  
one?" Mr. Mead shrugged.  
  
"I told Fudge that I needed a great gift for my daughter, and he shoved this in my face. Do you like it, Kitten?" Mr. Mead said, looking at   
  
his daughter anxiously. Iris held the broom in her hand carefully as she started at it.  
  
"It's wonderful, Dad. But, I haven't even the slightest clue as how to ride. I mean, when I was little Maggie read me stories of people riding   
  
on brooms, and I saw the pictures, but I'm still not sure -" Iris said, getting cut off by Harry and Ron at the same time.  
  
"I can teach you!" they both said at the same time. They both blushed and Ron surrendered his offer. Harry looked at him curiously and   
  
quickly pulled him off to the side when everyone else was having a closer look at the broom.   
  
"I thought you liked 'Mione!" Harry said quietly.  
  
"I did! But we've been on and off for so long, and we decided that we should most definitely go out with other people. And she's been on   
  
my back so often about going out with someone, and Iris is really pretty… But if you want her, mate, go right ahead," Ron said, looking at him   
  
quizzically. Harry nodded.  
  
"But you just wrote in your letter a few days ago that you like 'Mione!" Harry sighed. "All right. I have to tell you something that you might   
  
hit me for, mate. Er - you see - I've kind of liked - er - someone…" Harry said, looking at the floor. Ron smirked at him.  
  
"Hermione, right?" he said as Harry found the floor incredibly interesting. He nodded shortly and Ron laughed. "So it's kind of like trading off   
  
girls, then, huh?"   
  
"Well I wouldn't call it just that!" said Harry. "I mean, it sounds like you're swapping Chocolate Frog Cards!" Iris came into the hallway and   
  
looked at the two boys.   
  
"All right, either you two are sharing a dirty little secret with the closet or else you two don't want to have a go on my broom and try and   
  
teach me to ride," she said, chuckling.   
  
"Er -" said both boys, looking at each other.  
  
"What, er?" Iris asked, looking at both boys.  
  
"Think we could tell her about 'Mione?" Harry asked, looking over at Ron for an answer. Ron shrugged.  
  
"Yeah, I suppose. But only about Hermione and no one else," Ron said sternly. Iris looked curious for a moment and then shook her head.   
  
"Er - you see - I've kind of, erm, got a crush on…" Harry said, his voice trailing off. Iris smiled.  
  
"Hermione?"  
  
"Um, yeah…" Harry said, blushing beat red.  
  
"It's all right, Harry. I won't tell her. If I do, may my ears be ripped off and shoved down my throat after being dumped in a cat box," Iris   
  
said, holding up her right hand.   
  
"Eww…. And ouch," Ron said, looking disgusted.   
  
"Exactly." Harry trusted her very much. He nodded and the three went back out into the sitting room.   
  
"Where were you guys?" Hermione asked, looking over her shoulder at them, making Harry's mind go blank.  
  
"Er - uh…" was all that he was able to say.  
  
"We were simply talking about some of the moves done in previous games of Quidditch at Hogwarts," Iris said smoothly. She had obviously   
  
done this before. Hermione smiled and nodded.  
  
"Okay. Well, Iris, are you intending to try out your new cleaning utensil or are you going to make us all just sit here and converse   
  
pointlessly about nothing in particular?" Hermione said, making Harry, Ron, Fred, and George look around for help. Iris sighed.  
  
"Am I going to ride my broom or not?" she said, and the four boys nodded, grinning stupidly. "Sure. But there's just one problem: I don't   
  
know how to fly."   
  
"I can teach you!" Fred declared, and grabbed Iris by her arm and led her out of the house, the new broom in his free hand. The rest of   
  
them came to watch as Fred mounted in front of Iris.   
  
"Ready?" he said eagerly.  
  
"Well, I'm not sure -"  
  
"Good!" he said, and kicked off very hard from the ground. He went incredibly fast and Harry was wondering if Iris was going to fall straight   
  
off her broom. Maggie looked in horror as they rushed around the Victorian house many times.   
  
Fred finally landed, about five minutes later, with Iris clinging to his chest still. "You can let go. We've landed."  
  
"No we haven't! I can still feel us moving!" Iris yelled at him, her eyes shut tight. Maggie hurried over and gently took Iris's arm and helped   
  
her off the broom.   
  
"Fred, you idiot! Come here, Iris," Ron said, hurrying over to assist Iris. She clung to his shirt like a scared cat, and leaned her head against   
  
her chest. "You want to - er - sit for a moment?" he asked.   
  
"N-no. But I don't ever, EVER want to ride on one of those things again," Iris said into his shirt.   
  
Ron gently rubbed her back. "Iris, you've got to try. It's only Fred's stupidity. Do you want to try going up with me once?" he asked.   
  
"I don't know," Iris said, her ears perking up slightly. Ron played with one of her silky ears.   
  
"You can sit in front of me instead of like last time. And I'll have to - well, have my arms wrapped around you so I can hold the broomstick.   
  
And nothing fancy or anything. As soon as you want down, you can just say the word, okay?" Ron said, continuing to play with her ear.   
  
"O-okay," Iris said uncertainly. Maggie soon walked back into the house, deciding that Iris was in good hands.   
  
"There's a good girl. Now, first thing you do is you've got to lay the broom on the ground. Put your right hand over it. Just like that," Ron   
  
said, putting his hand just over Iris's. "Say 'up.'''  
  
"Up!" Iris said, looking down at the broomstick. It didn't move.   
  
"Er, why don't you try it again?" Ron suggested. She did, but still it didn't budge. However, Harry noticed that Ron commanded the   
  
broomstick up, though he said it was just a cough. The broom flew up into Iris's hand. "Look at that! You're already really good," he said, making Iris   
  
smile.   
  
"Right. Now you can mount the broom. Just sit in front of me. That's it… Wonderful, Iris," Ron said as he instructed her onto the broom in   
  
front of her. Harry smirked at his best mate; he was sure getting along with Iris well.   
  
The only problem was Iris's hair. Every time the wind blew, Ron ended up getting a faceful of Iris's chest-length, brown hair. He brushed it   
  
away, obviously not caring. "You - have too much - bloody hair!" Ron said from somewhere deep within the brown forest. Iris chuckled, and seemed   
  
a bit more relaxed with Ron. She took out a rubber band and quickly pulled her hair into a low ponytail.   
  
Ron put his hands on the broom handle, a bit in front of Iris. "Put your hands just below mine, all right? It'll help balance you a bit more.   
  
But don't worry if you start to lose your balance, 'cause I'll catch you. Ready?" Iris now looked like she was going to throw-up. "Easy, Iris, don't   
  
worry about it. We'll just go up a few feet and see how you like it, okay? If you want to come back down, just tell me, all right? And you can tell me   
  
when you want to go up a little higher and then when you feel comfortable enough to go forwards a bit," Ron said reassuringly. Iris looked at him and   
  
smiled, though she looked quite pale. Ron smiled back at her and he got ready to kick off.  
  
"All right, ready? Set? And up we go," Ron said, and lightly kicked off from the ground and Iris gasped.  
  
"Oh no. Ohnoohnohonoohno," she said quickly, shutting her eyes tight and gripping the broomstick handle tightly. Her ears were now   
  
pressed down flat against her head in fear.  
  
"It's all right, it's all right," Ron said softly and reassuringly. "See? We're just hovering about three feet off the ground. You're fine, you're   
  
okay." Iris peeked one eye open slightly. One ear perked up as well.   
  
"I'm not dead yet?" she asked, looking down at the ground.  
  
"No, not yet. Maybe in seventy years or so, but not now," Ron joked, and Iris surprisingly chuckled. "Wanna go up a little higher so we can   
  
go forward?"   
  
Iris looked a bit nervous, but nodded her head and Harry saw her legs tighten around the broom. The side of one calf gently touched one   
  
of Ron's legs and he instantly turned beat red, his ears surprisingly redder than his face.   
  
Ron went up a few feet more and kept going up until Iris got nervous once more. "Want down?" he asked, hoping that she didn't want to.   
  
"N-No, I'm fine. I just need to get a bit more used to this kind of height. N-Never been higher than that tree," Iris said, pointing to a willow   
  
not far from there. It was about six feet below them, and it took Iris a bit to get used to it.   
  
"Think we can go forwards a bit?" Ron asked, gently giving Iris's shoulder a light squeeze. She nodded, and bit her lower lip. "We don't   
  
have to, if you don't want. Or we could go lower and then go forwards, would that make things easier for you?" She nodded and he took them down   
  
so they were about two feet below the top of the willow that Iris had mentioned.   
  
Iris gave a weak chuckle. The broom lurched forward a bit, and her legs instinctively wrapped around Ron's. Ron's face was now puce, and   
  
he smiled to himself.   
  
"It's okay, Iris. D-Don't worry, it going nice a-and slow," Ron said, his voice a few octaves higher than normal. Iris nodded, though she still   
  
looked petrified. She began to relax a bit more, and then Ron turned without telling her, and she tightened her legs around Ron's and on the broom   
  
and looked like she was going to have a panic attack.   
  
Ron, though incredibly red, said, "Sorry, Iri. Just relax," he said gently. Iris's legs relaxed a bit. "Just turning back around so we can go   
  
back, okay? Wow, you've done really great for your first try on a broom. When I first started, I fell off so many times, my mum had to keep a   
  
First-Aid kit ready whenever Dad wanted me to try again." Iris chuckled softly at this as Ron gently brought them down. "Remember to think down   
  
as well, because these new brooms kind of go where you think, basically."   
  
Ron had them land gently and Mrs. Weasley smiled. "See, Fred? Your brother can act civil and kind to a lady without throwing them off a   
  
broom. Why can't you?"   
  
"I never threw her off! She didn't even move when we landed!" Fred objected.  
  
"That's because she was too broom-sick to move!" Mrs. Weasley said loudly, hitting Fred in the back of the head. Ron helped Iris from the   
  
broom and she thanked him.   
  
"Maybe later you could maybe go a few feet up by yourself? Me floating close by on a broom, ready if you need me?" he suggested   
  
hopefully. Iris shrugged.  
  
"Maybe, if I'm not too scared," she said, as Ron slung the broom over his shoulder. "But for now I'm kind of tired, maybe we could just sit   
  
for a while?"   
  
"Sorry, dear, we have to be off. School supply shopping and whatnot. Perhaps we'll stop by later?" Mrs. Weasley said, smiling politely. Iris   
  
nodded and shrugged.  
  
"Take your time. I've got no where to go. I'm the outcast of the entire town," Iris said, taking a slight bow. "See you lot later, then,   
  
maybe." 


	5. Conversations and Letters

A/N: To those of you who reviewed, THANK YOU! Unfortunatly that would make you only two of the people who did review. Anywho, I'm   
  
flying right on by now with chappies, seeing as I'm getting into it more. Anywhos, no one's reviewing that much and that makes me ANGRY and sad.   
  
:   
  
About two hours later, Ron was begging his father to let him call Iris, as she had given them the number of her cell phone.   
  
"Awww, Ickle Ronniekins has a crush!" Fred mocked.  
  
"I do not!" Ron said, though his ears were very red.   
  
"Yeah, right. We all saw you turn as red as humanly possible when she wrapped her legs around yours and then saw you smile at it!"   
  
George said, making Ron redder.   
  
"Leave your brother alone, boys. He can fancy anyone he wants to," Mrs. Weasley said, putting sandwiches on plates for everyone.  
  
"Please, Dad? Just for a little while, Harry can show me how to use it! We'll be very careful!" Ron pleaded.   
  
"Arthur, let the boy call his crush," Mrs. Weasley said distractedly, and Fred and George smirked.  
  
"I do not fancy her!" Ron protested.  
  
"Then why are you so intent on calling a girl you just met so very recently?" Charlie said, taking a long swig of coffee.  
  
"Oh, and where's Fleur nowadays, huh, Charlie?" Ron snapped at him, making him blush.   
  
"Well at least we both know that I like her, and at least I'm not a weird stalker who wants to talk to her every two seconds!' Charlie   
  
snapped at him as he buried himself in the Daily Prophet.   
  
"Two hours!" Ron yelled at his brother.   
  
"All right, you two, that's quite enough! Arthur, if you do not let Ron call Iris, then I shall be quite mad at you for quite some time," Mrs.   
  
Weasley threatened, and Mr. Weasley nodded, looking a bit pale. Ron dragged Harry along with him as he ran through the house to the basement,   
  
which was quite and very cluttered with anything imaginable. Toasters, screwdrivers, knuts, bolts, waffle irons, rubber ducks, headphones, and any   
  
other Muggle thing. Harry couldn't believe what Mr. Weasley had done to a computer, taking it completely apart, even the smallest pieces of it were   
  
in - er - even smaller pieces!   
  
"All right, Harry, you know how to work it, just show Ron and then both of you come back upstairs," Mr. Weasley said chipperly, looking   
  
proud that he knew how to work it. Harry dialed the number and told Ron not to yell and to simply ask for Iris.   
  
(CONVERSATION)  
  
Iris: Hello?  
  
Ron: Er - Hi?  
  
Iris: Um, may I help you?  
  
Ron aherm Um, yes, I'm looking for someone. Pause  
  
Iris: It would probably help me a bit more to know who you're looking for.  
  
Ron: Er - Iris Mead? I-R-I-S ….  
  
Iris: Yeah, that would be me. Who's this?  
  
Ron: Weason. I-I mean Ronsly. I mean - er - I'm not sure.   
  
Iris: giggles All right. Just say your name. It's that simple.  
  
Ron: Ronsly Weason! pause  
  
Iris: Er - I'm going to call the cops, okay?  
  
Ron: What's a cops?  
  
Iris: The people who are going to find out just who you are and why you're calling me.  
  
Ron: But you know why I'm calling you!  
Iris: I really don't.  
  
Ron: Yes, you do.  
  
Iris: I seriously don't know.  
  
Ron: Yes, you do!   
  
Iris: All right, cop time, buddy.  
  
Ron: No! Nonononono! Hang on a second!  
  
Iris: And why should I?  
  
Ron: Because I want to ask you if you can come over to my house later!  
Iris: I DON'T EVEN KNOW YOU!  
  
Ron: YES, YOU DO!  
  
Iris: What's your problem?!   
  
Ron: I don't know! What is my problem?!  
  
At this point, Harry was laughing so hard, tears were streaming down his cheeks, and this was only from listening to Ron talk. Taking pity   
  
on him, he took the phone from him.  
  
Harry: Iris?  
  
Iris: Who the ruddy hell are you two?!  
  
Harry: It's Harry Potter and Ron Weasley. He's just too dumb to say his name.  
  
Iris: I don't think I should believe you.  
  
Harry: Why not?  
  
Iris: Because Ron Weasley is very smooth and he doesn't stutter like that!  
  
Harry: Yeah, you only met him for a few hours. He's really a weirdo.  
  
Iris: How do you know how long they stayed over?  
  
Harry: Because I was over!   
  
Iris: Prove it.  
  
Harry: sighs Let's see, Fred took you up on your new broom and you ran to Ron.  
  
Iris: pauses Sorry, Harry, I'm just a paranoid weirdo who thinking she's going to die.  
  
Harry: chuckles No problem.  
  
Iris: Every day.  
  
Harry: laughs harder   
  
Iris: Is Ron going to be okay?  
  
Harry: Well, right now he's having some sort of an attack or something.  
  
Iris: What?  
  
Harry: Well, he's kind of pale, and he's shaking kind of bad.  
  
Iris: Then you should tell his parents or take him to a hospital or something!  
  
Harry: Nah, I think he's just weird.  
  
Iris: Are you sure? He could be dying, for all you know. He could have a medical condition!  
  
Harry: Only stupidity.  
  
Iris: Are you positive he's going to be all right? He sounded pretty shaken up.  
  
Harry: Yeah, he's weird like that, you'll get used to him.   
  
Iris: So, just curious, why did you two call in the first place?  
  
Harry: Oh, hang on. Pause Ron wanted to ask you if you still have to get your school things.  
  
Iris: Well, yeah. I mean, I only found out last night.  
  
Harry: He also wants to know if you'd like to accompany us tomorrow.  
  
Iris: All right. I'll have to ask Maggie though.  
  
Harry: That's all right.  
  
Iris: So, what? Am I going to meet you lot somewhere or shall we forever wander, looking for one another?   
  
Harry: Er - How about the one where we don't wander forever?  
  
Iris: I did hear about this one place. Um, the Leaky Cauldron?   
  
Harry: Sure. Perfect.   
  
Iris: What time?   
  
Harry: What time what?  
  
Iris: sighs What time should we meet at the Leaky Cauldron?   
  
Harry: Oh. Oh yeah. Um, three?   
  
Iris: All right. See you there.   
  
Harry: Okay. Bye.   
  
Iris: Bye Harry. Tell Ron I hope he's feeling better.   
  
Harry: sniggers Oh, I will. Bye.  
  
He hung up the phone, turned around, and began laughing. Ron was pounding his head against one of the basement walls, though not hard   
  
enough to cause any permanent damage.   
  
"I'm a loser!" he declared.   
  
Harry walked over and put a hand on his shoulder. "Yes. Yes, you are. But that's why you have me, right?"   
  
Ron turned around and glared at him. "You're not helping, Harry."   
  
"Relax, mate. Tomorrow we'll meet Iris at the Leaky Cauldron at three," Harry assured him.   
  
Ron sighed and slid against the stone wall until he was sitting, his head in his hands. He looked miserable. "As always, Potter gets the girl   
  
and the sidekick is lonely."   
  
"What are you on about?"   
  
"Harry, she obviously likes you more than she likes me."   
  
"What? Ugh! Me and Iris? No way! Have you seen her ears?!" Harry said, looking disgusted.   
  
Ron looked up, glaring at him. "D'you have holes for eyes?!"   
  
"What'll your kids look like? Red hair with - with those ears!"  
  
"What's wrong with Iri's ears?" Ron demanded, getting to his feet, his ears a nasty shade of scarlet.   
  
"They're - they're like some animal's ears, all right?" Harry blurted out.   
  
"SO?!" Ron thundered. "JUST BECAUSE YOU DON'T LIKE HER EARS, IT DOESN'T MEAN THAT THEY AREN'T AS PRETTY AS THE REST OF HER,   
  
OKAY?!!!" He blushed furiously.   
  
Harry suddenly felt bad. "I didn't - I didn't mean that you might not like them."   
  
"Yeah, well, if you could stop fucking insulting my friend, then I might not yell again," Ron said, shocking Harry. Ron rarely used the 'f' word   
  
at all, even when he was at his angriest, he never said that.   
  
"WHAT IS GOING ON DOWN THERE?!" bellowed not Mrs. Weasley, but Hermione. She hurried down the stairs and slapped the both of them.   
  
"Just what the hell do you think you two are yelling about? Mrs. Weasley's afraid that you two aren't going to talk to each other ever again and not   
  
talk to the rest of the Weasleys because in their basement is where it happened and you two will become Percys! Now, you two will shut up,   
  
apologize to one another, and then help Mr. Weasley make Mrs. Weasley stop crying!" Hermione bellowed at the two, who each had a red hand print   
  
on their faces.   
  
"Sorry," muttered Harry.  
  
"Sorry," Ron said even quieter.  
  
"NOT GOOD ENOUGH FOR ME! DO IT OVER!" Hermione yelled at them.  
  
"Sorry for making fun of Iris's ears in front of you."  
  
"Sorry for … What am I supposed to be sorry for? You insulted one of my best friends!" Ron said, his ears turning red again.  
  
"RONALD!!" Hermione yelled at the top of her voice, so all of the people upstairs came down there to see what exactly was going on. The   
  
Weasleys, Lupin, Tonks, Moody, Dumbledore, Hagrid, and McGonagall came down, and crying was heard from two people: one being Mrs. Weasley,   
  
and the other being Emma.  
  
"Wha's goin' on down here? Yer makin' Emma and Molly cry!" Hagrid said, looking at the three sternly.  
  
"THEY'RE BEING JACKASSES! No, Harry apologized, RONALD didn't because he thinks it's all Harry's fault and I just wanna beat you both into   
  
that wall!" Hermione bellowed, looking very hassled. She was panting and looked ready to pop as the two boys backed against the wall.   
  
"S-S-Sorry for making s-such a b-b-big d-deal 'bout it," Ron whispered, not taking his eyes off of Hermione.   
  
"THAT'S ALL I ASKED FOR! AND YOU COULDN'T HAVE JUST SAID IT IN THE FIRST PLACE, COULD YOU?!" Hermione bellowed at Ron.   
  
"S-S-Sorry for that, t-t-too," he squeaked, looking like if he pressed himself against the wall anymore, he'd go right through.   
  
"'Kay. That's better. I need to go hit something," Hermione said, and as she started up the stairs, everyone made a very large pass way   
  
for her to go through. Harry's face suddenly turned pale when he looked at the phone.   
  
"Oh no. Ron, Ron, look!" he said, looking as pale as Nearly Headless Nick. Ron turned and looked at the phone, which was off it's dial thingy.   
  
"So? You forgot to put it back right?" he said, his color coming back slightly.  
  
"Ron, that means that the last person who used it, could have heard the entire conversation! And the way we were bellowing, she probably   
  
could've just heard it from the orphanage without any help at all!" Harry said loudly, making Ron go pale.   
  
"Oh no. Oh no. Then she might know that I - erm, uh…" Ron said, his voice trailing off as he slunk to the floor.  
  
"Yeah, well, at least you didn't say that she had animal ears. GREAT! Just our luck, huh? She thinks you're some kind of weird stalker that's   
  
in love with her, while she thinks I'm the most horrid person on the face of the Earth!" Harry said, sitting down next to him.   
  
"You b-boys get on your brooms and fly right over there to make sure the poor dear is all right. First one horrid thing and then a better   
  
thing, and then she hears Hermione all angry so she knows that it has to be bad! You two, bundle up, get on your brooms, and I don't want to see   
  
either of you two back here without each other and not for at least two hours, understand?" Mrs. Weasley said, dangerously quiet. Without a word,   
  
the two ran up to their room and pulled on their cloaks and gloves, and hurried out of the house with their brooms.  
  
The two flew for about an hour and then saw the old, large Victorian house. They landed lightly, though Harry doubted that his hands   
  
wouldn't be completely frost-bitten by the time the two got back to the Burrow. They knocked on the door, brooms slung over their shoulders. It   
  
now seemed as if the weather was changing only when they needed it least. When they were flying against the cold wind, it seemed even colder.   
  
Now that they were fighting to take off their warm gloves, it seemed to get hotter, to say the least.   
  
Maggie smiled at them when she opened the door. "Harry, Ron, what are you two doing back so soon? Not that it's unwanted."   
  
"Er - Maggie? Can we talk to Iris? I have to apologize for something," Harry said, sighing. Maggie looked at him quizzically.  
  
"Well, she's not in here. I saw her take her notebook, a few pencils, her pillow, her blanket, and her smaller blanket outside. She takes the   
  
smaller one with her when she's upset, so I didn't want to upset her even more. Ms guess is that she's out there, right by the forest," Maggie said,   
  
looking slightly worried.   
  
"Thanks, Maggie," Ron said, and the two were off for the small forest that was in the farthest corner of the property. They went one until   
  
they reached a very large, twisted old tree, with some of the thickest branches Harry had ever seen. On the trunk of the tree was a letter that was taped with clear Scotch tapeA/N: Why I included this, nobody knows…shifts eyes nervously.  
  
Harry picked up the note and read aloud:   
  
Harry and Ron,  
  
I don't know why you two were talking about me like that. Though I didn't hear Ron insult me, I heard him say something   
  
about my ears and how they're not as pretty as some other girl's. But Harry was just plain out cruel. Ears like an animal's, hmm? Well maybe I don't   
  
like how your… your hair's always so messy! Why don't you just cut it a bit and then use a few hundred bottles of gel?! And then I head Harry talking   
  
about red hair and ears. MY FATHER? You are insulting my father? He's a wonderful man and you know he is! If it wasn't for him, the war would have   
  
gone to hell the first instant Voldemort came back! And if you don't like him, then you can just go right to hell! I knew your mother and father, Harry,   
  
and trust me, they were nothing like you! Your father and mother were best friends with my dad, who also happens to be a werewolf! So, if you've   
  
got any more snide comments about him, then why don't you just add that in, too? And if it helps you to find more insults about me, my teeth are   
  
quite pointy and sharp, just like a werewolf's! That's one side-effect of having a father that's a werewolf.   
  
If you didn't like me then you could've just backed off a bit. You could've not taught me how to fly. You could've acted a bit more   
  
meaner, like Percy. I hope I never seen either of you ever again, and if I do pass you in school, run. Run as fast as you can carry your fat asses.   
  
Because if I see either if you in the hall, it only takes a second to kick a guy in the nards hard enough so he cries. If you show this to Hermione and   
  
Ginny and everyone else there, make sure they know that their company was lovely, and I can't wait to see most of them at school. I wanted to be   
  
in Gryffindor at first, but now I want to be in any other house possible. I'm going to ask Professor Dumbledore if I can be Sorted again, into a   
  
different house.   
  
I don't need people like you in my life.  
  
Iris  
  
Harry stared at the letter in disbelief. He deserved this, but Ron didn't. He looked paler than ever. It was hard for Harry to understand what   
  
it would be like to never see someone that you'd like to get to know better ever again.   
  
Suddenly, Harry realized that there was a familiar noise coming from somewhere near him. Sobbing. Someone was crying. Harry looked over   
  
at Ron, and saw that hew as just as confused as he. The two boys looked up and saw someone laying down in the tree, with a blanket covering   
  
them and a pillow beneath their head. Harry and Ron nodded at each other, and mounted and kicked off on their brooms. Iris was laying down in the   
  
tree as if this was her bed, a pillow and a large blanket and even a smaller blanket. Harry took it to be a bit of a security blanket or something of   
  
that sort. It was then that he realized that Iris was crying in her sleep. Had they really upset her all that much? Harry now felt like a complete ass.   
  
He had gotten mad at his best friend, made someone hate him for possibly the rest of her life, and had ruined all of Ron's chances of love with Iris.   
  
'Well, Potter. What else can you do to screw up others lives? Hmm, maybe I could burn Mrs. Weasley's cookies… No, they're too good.' Harry thought   
  
to himself.   
  
"Merlin," was all that Ron could mutter. "I feel so horrid. We made her cry, Harry! Cry in her sleep, even!"   
  
"Yeah, I know. Listen, she won't talk to me, and I don't blame her. But you still have a chance. Go on," Harry said, pushing him in the   
  
direction of the sleeping/sobbing girl.  
  
"What? Me? What makes you think that she'll listen to me?" Ron said, his eyes wide.   
  
"Because she likes you more. Go on."   
  
"What'll I do?"   
  
"I dunno. Lay there with her for a while. That branch is big enough for the both of you," Harry said with a shrug.   
  
Ron looked nervous, yet pleased with this idea. "But - but what if she wakes up and pushes me out of the tree?" he fretted.   
  
Harry put his hand on his best friend's shoulder. "Well then, I'll see you at St. Mungo's." Harry leaned forwards on his broomstick and flew   
  
off.   
  
Ron sighed and looked at the tree. The branch that Iris had chosen was rather high, so he flew up to the branch quietly. He settled his   
  
broom on another thick branch.   
  
"Iris?" he said cautiously. Nothing was heard. Ron felt horrible as he watched tears slide down this beautiful girl's cheeks. She looked so   
  
fragile, so delicate, as if a single feather would shatter that delicate face. Ron crouched down and gently put his forefinger to her cheek. He took   
  
his finger away and looked at the bit of moisture on his fingertip. Ron wiped it casually away on his robes.   
  
"Iris Mead, I have never been sorrier in my life," Ron said softly. Iris did not wake. "I'd never, ever mean to hurt you like I did. And when   
  
you think I said that your ears weren't as pretty as some other girl's, you're wrong about that." Ron lay down next to Iris, pulling the blanket over   
  
him as well. "I think that they're beautiful. Harry doesn't, but you misheard him. He only said that he didn't like your ears, Iri. And when you wake   
  
up, you can hate me forever, but that's okay," Ron said, and he kissed her on the forehead.   
  
It was only then that he realized that Iris had stopped crying. Her lips turned up in her sleep. "I believe you." Ron smiled and held Iris close   
  
to him. He liked the feeling of her body warmth against him. He sighed, and soon fell asleep.   
  
An hour passed, and Iris woke, keeping her lids closed (trapping the pools of turquoise behind them) in an attempt to savor her comfort. It   
  
took her a few moments to realize that someone's arms were wrapped tenderly around her. Iris blinked in confusion. She saw none other than the   
  
red-headed Ronald Weasley, sleeping peacefully next to her underneath the covers. Iris then wondered if her dream of Ron apologizing to her wasn't   
  
just a dream.   
  
Then Iris's eyes widened in horror. Her ears perked up as she looked underneath the blanket in worry. Phew. They were both still fully   
  
clothed. Well, Ron had somehow managed to lose his shoes, but it seemed to be nothing related to what Iris was worrying about.   
  
Iris smiled and lightly brushed a few strands of hair from his face. He was so cute. Before Iris even left, she knew that she wouldn't be able   
  
to stay mad at them. She was so bad at being mean.   
  
"Ron," she said, gently pulling him nearer. Iris wrapped her arms around him, leaning her head against his chest. "Ron, wake up," she said, a   
  
bit louder.   
  
Ron blinked a few times. "Wha'? Huh? Oh. H-hi, Iri," he said, blushing slightly when he realized that if they were any closer to each other,   
  
they'd be wearing the same clothes.   
  
"You're so sweet to come after me," Iris said, finding him almost -- irresistible.   
  
Ron felt a surge of courage speed through him, making him say --  
  
"Irisyou'reallIeverthinkaboutandyou'refunnyandprettyandwillyoubemygirlfriend?"   
  
Ron was sure he'd spoke too fast, but Iris smiled and hugged him tighter. "Of course I will, Ron. You're the sweetest man I've ever met,"   
  
she said.   
  
Ron grinned like mad and kissed the top of her head. "I really hoped so," he said, and hugged her back. Iris smiled and closed her eyes,   
  
and rested her head against his chest once more.   
  
Suddenly Iris's eyes popped wide open as she felt something push at her lower thigh. She gasped and pulled back. "What?" Ron asked,   
  
looking at her curiously.   
  
"Y-Your pants!" she said, pointing at the bulge that was now near his kneecap. Ron looked at it in wonder as it started to move about in   
  
his pants.  
  
"W-What the hell?" he said, as the bulge hooted. "P-Pig? GET OUT OF MY PANTS, YOU FILTHY FOWL!" Ron bellowed as he held onto the   
  
bulge and got it out from his pants leg. Pig flew frantically away to a nearby branch.   
  
The two looked at each other in shock and confusion, they began laughing. "W-What was your owl doing in your pants?" laughed Iris, as   
  
Ron blushed brilliantly. There was another hoot and Hedwig landed on Ron's hip. "Why are all of these owls obsessed with your ass?" she laughed,   
  
nearly falling out of the tree.  
  
"Dunno. Hey there, Hedwig. Brought something for me? Oh, well, thank you," Ron said as the owl stuck her leg out to him gracefully. He   
  
took the large piece of parchment and saw Dumbledore's neat handwriting. He silently read:   
  
Ron,  
  
The Burrow's been attacked and Harry's been injured. We've recently found out that there are more Death Eaters less   
  
than one mile away from the orphanage. We've already had Maggie round up all of the children and Flooed them here. I had her destroy the fireplace   
  
so that none of the Death Eaters would follow. Your mother thought that you were already on your way back by now, but when Iris wasn't with   
  
Maggie, I knew she'd be with you. It was then that Maggie remembered that she was in a tree earlier, and that she had probably fallen asleep. IF   
  
YOU ARE NOT WITH IRIS DO NOT GO BACK FOR HER. You would risk your life for another's, which is brave, but Iris is very powerful and strong, she   
  
can fend for herself.  
  
However, if Iris is indeed with you, you'll have to take her new broom to get to Hogwarts faster. You have to run inside   
  
and take only what would be perfectly necessary. I would also like for each of you to make somewhat of a survival kit for yourselves. Do not worry   
  
about clothes, cleanliness is not needed while on the run. I would prefer for you to write only once a day and switch between the owls that we send   
  
to you. To make sure that you're not followed, try to find a forest of deserted place far from there where you can stay for a while, and then move   
  
on only a few miles at a time, understand?  
  
Make sure you two use your food sparingly, for you do not know how long you shall be out there. Your mother will   
  
occasionally send food, I'm sure of that. Double back a few times when you finally start off for Hogwarts, just in case you're being followed. Your   
  
mother's worried sick about you and Harry and Iris. Harry was put under one of the strongest curses that the Ministry would consider legal. He's   
  
very ill and injured badly. Madam Pomfrey is tending his wounds the best he can, but she's having difficulties with this, seeing as this curse has   
  
barely been used at all since the Middle Ages.   
  
This is all of the help I can offer you, I fear. Fawkes will be checking up on you occasionally. If there is any trouble with   
  
you, then he shall stay. Try to stay hidden and out of trouble. You are allowed to go into a very small town or preferably a village, and buy some   
  
food. Go into the house and grab Maggie's purse if you have to. Go straight away and destroy this letter once you've read it. We'll all in my office at   
  
Hogwarts, and the password is 'Fickle Fairies'.   
  
I wish you the best of luck and a safe return,  
  
Albus Dumbledore 


End file.
